Category: Tourism

Dec 08, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has been included in South Asian cruises run by Zegrahm, a US based cruise company, with calls at three key ports in the island in 2011, according to the travel calendar released by the firm. Sri Lanka ended a 30-year war in May 2009 and the country has […]

Dec 07, 2010 (LBO) – A range of medical treatment presently unavailable in the island will be made available to Sri Lankans in neighboring India at an affordable cost, a newly launched health tourism company said. “Our aim is to offer high quality health care at an affordable cost to middle income families,” Manilal Fernando, […]

Dec 02, 2010 (LBO) – Big Sri Lankan operators and international chains have responded to a call to restore the original charms of a colonial-era hotel overlooking Colombo port once popular with visitors who came by ship, an official said. “We want to bring it back to its original form,” said Gamini Wickemasinghe, chairman of […]

Dec 01, 2010 (LBO) – Thirty parties have responded to a call for proposals to operate boat and leisure services at major reservoirs in Sri Lanka, irrigation minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said. Once the proposals are accepted the government was planning to kick off the services in January starting with the Victoria and Polgolla […]

Nov 11, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Hemas Holdings is considering expanding its hotels business with plans to build resorts in the south and east coasts as a post-war tourism boom gets under way, its chief executive Husein Esufally said. The group, which now operates four hotels, has a property in Tangalle on the south […]

Nov 06, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Aitken Spence Hotels has taken over the management of India’s Grand Palance Hotel and Spa in Yercaud in Tamil Nadu, increasing its properties in the country to five, the company said. “It is evident that we were offered the management of Grand Palace and Spa as we have […]

Nov 03, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Aitken Spence net profit rose 29 percent to 606 million rupees in the September 2010 quarter from a year ago largely on better earnings from its hotels, a stock exchange filing said. Group sales rose 11 percent to 6.3 billion rupees while earnings per share after subdivision were […]

Nov 02, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-owned Bank of Ceylon is seeking an international hotel chain to manage its subsidiary, Grand Oriental Hotel (GOH), a landmark built during British times overlooking Colombo port. Sri Lanka is experiencing a tourism boom with a sharp upturn in visitors following the end of its 30-year ethnic war […]

Oct 25, 2010 (LBO) – Land in a military sports ground in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo would be given to Hong Kong-based Shangri-La group to build a 75 million US dollar luxury hotel and apartment complex, a media report said. Sri Lanka’s The Sunday Times newspaper said the cabinet of ministers had approved the proposal […]

Oct 25, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s listed Aitken Spence group has proposed to build a luxury city hotel on excess land owned by a state-run firm in the island’s capital Colombo, fisheries minister Rajitha Senaratna said. The land belongs to Ceynor Foundation, a state-run boat builder. The firm has offices in Colombo’s D R […]

Oct 18, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s has been nominated under few regional categories for Asia region in the World Travel Awards, but lost to countries like India, Singapore, China, Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia which swept the boards. Sri Lanka is recovering from 30 years of war and the country has been named the top […]

Oct 18, 2010 (LBO) – Delays in getting land are holding up new hotel projects in Sri Lanka which needs more rooms for an anticipated boom in arrivals with the end of a war, an official said. Hiran Cooray, chairman of the Jetwing hotel and travel group, said there was much pressure for new investments […]