Category: Tourism

Aug 27, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s tourist development agency has offered islets, hundreds of acres of land bordering beaches, a wildlife reserve and a wetland on 99-year leases to build tourism related projects. Eight islets in Kalpitiya off the western coast of Sri Lanka 150 kilometres north of the capital Colombo are being offered […]

Aug 24, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s listed Palm Gardens and Riverina Hotels said they would merge through a share swap and the new entity would build a 500 room hotel. Investors holding 14.1 million Riverina shares would get one share of Palm Garden for every two held, the two firms said in stock exchange […]

Aug 22, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has approved 129 projects involving the building of 9,364 hotel rooms up to July 2012, deputy economic development minister Lakshman Abeywardene said. In 2013, revenues of 1,360 million US dollars were expected; in 2014, 1,740 million US dollars; in 2015, 2,120 million US dollars and in 2016, 2,500 […]

Aug 20, 2012 HANOI, Vietnam (LBO) – Tourism between Sri Lanka and Vietnam which is just beginning has a strong potential to grow in the future, officials said during a familiarization tour of the county by travel agents of the Indian Ocean Island. Senior representatives of 15 travel agents from Sri Lanka were on a […]

Aug 15, 2012 (LBO) – Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka rose 7. 8 percent to 90,338 in July 2012 from a year earlier, with arrivals up to July rising 16.7 percent to 543,205, data from the state tourism promotion office showed. In the first seven months of 2012, the top generating market was India, with […]

Aug 14, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Travel Agents Association has put their members through a four day training programme aimed at improving skills to better service the island’s booming travel industry, officials said. The four day programme conducted by the International Aviation Academy of Sri Lankan airlines included coaching in team building, training on […]

August 06, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is on a drive to attract 100,000 American tourists by 2016 in a bid to woo part of tourist traffic to the Maldives and India and attract more up market travelers to the island, a diplomat said. “We are working on an aggressive campaign to attract 100,000 American […]

July 20, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has re-started the construction of a stalled 43-story high rise in the capital Colombo with a new company taking over assets, which will house a Hyatt branded hotel, a statement said. It could house 600 people seated, or 1,000 standing. The hotel will have 54 suites, 265 ‘King’ […]

July 15, 2012 (LBO) – Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka rose 21.6 percent to 65,245 in June 2012 from a year earlier, with arrivals up to June rising 18.7 percent to 452,867, data from the state tourism promotion office showed. In the first half of 2012, the top generating market was India, with 85,426 up […]

July 11, 2012 (LBO) – US based Marriott International said it has signed up with Sri Lanka’s East West Properties Plc, to open a 200-room hotel in Weligma, on the island’s Southern coast in 2014. The 11-storey Weligama Bay Marriott Resort & Spa, will be operated under Marriott’s flagship Marriott Hotels & Resorts brand. “Sri […]

July 8, 2012 (LBO) – A mixed property project including a hotel in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo by India’s ITC has been given sweeping tax breaks under the island’s strategic investment law, a government notice said. Welcome Hotels Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, a newly incorporated ITC unit in Sri Lanka has already paid 73. 5 million […]

July 07, 2012 (LBO) – Cinnamon Lakeside, a hotel in Sri Lanka’s John Keells group had won an award from a UK-based business travel publication, giving international recognition to high industry standards, officials said. ‘Business Destinations’, a magazine targeted at corporate buyers and travel professionals, had named Cinnamon Lakeside the best luxury hotel in Sri […]