Category: Tourism

August 8, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka greeted fewer visitors for the second straight month in July, as holidaymakers shied away amidst heavy fighting between government and Tamil Tiger rebels. The Indian Ocean Island welcomed 55,354 travellers 2.5 percent lower over the corresponding month last year and the low numbers is also threatening the leisure […]

August 04, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s largest hotel operator, John Keells Holdings Friday said they have picked up their fifth Maldivian resort for 12.5 million dollars. Some of the best diving sites in the Maldives are found in the vicinity of Ellaidhoo such as Fish Head, Maya Thila, Halaveli Wreck and Fesdhoo Wreck. Maldivian […]

July 26, 2006 (LBO) – Aitken Spence Hotels re-branded its Maldivian properties under a new Adaaran brand, with six of its resort products coming under the new umbrella. The hotels will be branded in four tiers – Adaaran Select, Adaaran Club, Adaaran Prestige and Adaaran Ayurveda Village the company said Wednesday. The group also recently […]

July 24 (LBO) – International Finance Corp is to pilot an online accommodation booking portal in Sri Lanka, so small and medium hotels can access global markets. The project to set up two online accommodation booking portals is driven by the South Asia Enterprise Development Facility (SEDF) an arm of the World Bank’s IFC. Plans […]

July 14, 2006 (LBO) – Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka slipped slightly in June as arrivals from some key markets in Europe, including the United Kingdom, turned negative. Arrivals dropped 3.6 percent in June to just over 44,000 tourists, Sri Lanka’s Tourist Board said, with the industry still in off-season and also battling political upheaval. […]

June 22, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Hemas Holdings Ltd may partner with Thailand’s largest quoted resort and fast food operator Minor International Public Company Ltd., to develop hotels here. Minor International also manages properties in the Middle East and runs hotels in Thailand under international brands names like Anantara and J W Marriot. Both […]

June 22, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Hemas Holdings Ltd may partner with Thailand’s largest quoted resort and fast food operator Minor International Public Company Ltd., to develop hotels here. Minor International also manages properties in the Middle East and runs hotels in Thailand under international brands names like Anantara and J W Marriot. Both […]

June 20, 2006 (LBO) – Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka showed slow growth in May as local violence grows and travel from some European and South Asian markets slide. Arrivals were up about 7.2 percent in May to 43,824 travellers over the same month last year, with top generating markets India and the United Kingdom […]

June 19, 2006 (LBO) – The chairman of the Sri Lanka’s tourist board was prevented from leaving the country at the Bandaranaike International Airport early Monday morning, an official said. Immigration officials had stopped Udaya Nanayakkara from leaving Sri Lanka on a complaint from the Bribery Commission, Controller of Immigration P B Abeykoon said. Nanayakkara […]

COLOMBO, June 19, 2006 (AFP) – The United Nations agency for children Monday announced the launch of a media campaign to discourage the sexual exploitation of Sri Lankan children by tourists.“A child who is a victim of sexual abuse may suffer serious, lifelong or even life-threatening consequences,” said UNICEF senior programme coordinator Yasmin Ali Haque.UNICEF […]

June 19, 2006 (LBO) – The chairman of the Sri Lanka’s tourist board was prevented from leaving the country at the Bandaranaike International Airport early Monday morning, an official said. Immigration officials had stopped Udaya Nanayakkara from leaving Sri Lanka on a complaint from the Bribery Commission, Controller of Immigration P B Abeykoon said. Nanayakkara […]

May 26, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Asian Hotels & Properties Ltd, a unit of conglomerate John Keells Holdings, said Friday that they have started apartment sales based on floor plans of its new condominium complex. “We have now got the floor plans of each unit to sell. Earlier we got bookings based on the […]