Category: Tourism

Oct 24, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s proposed 50 US dollar per person fee for an electronic visa has triggered a row with India with the possibility of the country running afoul of obligations under a South Asian regional arrangement, a media report said. The Sunday Times newspaper said the Indian High Commission (embassy) in […]

Oct 24, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is likely to charge a reduced fee from south Asian tourists visiting the island under a new scheme that provides online approval for travel that will replace an on-arrival visa scheme next year. Minister of economic development Basil Rajapaksa said the proposed 50 US dollar per person fee […]

Oct 18, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka Saturday launched hot air ballooning over Colombo with daily flights scheduled from November as part of plans to boost leisure activities in the city and attract both local and foreign tourists. Adventure Asia, says it has been operating commercial balloon flights in the central areas of Dambulla, Sigiriya […]

Oct 12, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s John Keells Holdings has tied up with local and foreign training outfits to train staff for its hotels after the end of a war led to a boom in arrivals. The group has tied up with the Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management based in Dubai and is also […]

Oct 10, 2011 (LBO) – Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka rose 27. 2 percent to 60,219 in September from a year earlier, helped by surging arrivals from India and China, though British visitors fell, official data showed. In the nine months to September 2011, total arrivals rose 34. 3 percent to 598,006. During the month […]

Oct 04, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s LOLC Leisure has bought full control of the Tropical Villas resort on the south coast paying 165 million rupees to Carbotels for the remaining 40 percent, a stock exchange filing said. The firm had bought 60 percent of Tropical Villas Ltd (TVL) in August 2010 and now holds […]

Oct 04, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is developing a system to track and monitor foreign nationals as they enter and travel around the country, after a new online travel approval system is fully operational, an official said. The immigration department already had a ‘migration intelligence unit’ but another special unit would be created in […]

Oct 03, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s John Keells group has tied up with a local university in a project to revive a coral reef that is the main draw on a southern beach where it will reopen a refurbished hotel. Chitral Jayatilake, head of eco tourism and special projects at John Keells Holdings, said […]

Oct 02, 2011 (LBO) – Maldives’ Adaaran Prestige Resorts run by Sri Lanka’s Aitken Spence group was voted the India Ocean’s best water villa at World Travel Awards 2011, where the top Asian spots were swept by India. India also won Asia’s leading hotel (Trident Gurgaon, India), Asia’s leading luxury hotel (The Oberoi, Gurgaon), Asia’s […]

Sept 30, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s electronic tourist travel approval system will be effective from January 01, 2012 with a trial run starting from Saturday, October 01, officials said. An online portal – www.eta.gov.lk – from which to apply for entry permits from Sri Lanka’s department of immigration and emigration was officially launched Friday. […]

Sept 28, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s new electronic travel authorization system will approve applications within 24 hours but most applications will be approved in a much shorter time, immigration officials said. The portal www.eta.gov.lk will be opened on September 30 and the new process will be applied after a “reasonable time”, Sri Lanka’s immigration […]

Sept 28, 2011 (LBO) – John Keells group has revamped and rebranded two hotels on Sri Lanka’s south coast, sharply raising rates as it lures tourists with leopard and whale watching tours. The group spent about 15.5 million US dollars in revamping the Chaaya Tranz Hikkaduwa beach hotel and the Chaaya Wild Yala game lodge, […]