Sri Lanka the cynosure at Thai Travel Fair

The 2019 edition of the Thai International Travel Fair was held in Bangkok, Thailand last week. The inauguration was held at the Bangkok Convention Center at Central World Bangkok followed by a gala dinner at Centara Grand. The event was attended by over 500 tourism stakeholders from around the world including Sri Lanka.

The Chief Guest at the inauguration was the Tourism Minister of Thailand while the Guest of Honour was the Tourism Minister of Sri Lanka, John Amaratunga who received an enthusiastic welcome from the capacity crowd that was present.

Later on Minister Amaratunga declared opened the Sri Lanka Booth, which was the cynosure at the travel fair. Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau made use of the opportunity to launch a promotional microsite highlighting the Buddhist trail in Sri Lanka. The microsite consists of the main Buddhist tourism attractions in the country, meditation centres and facilities available to learn Buddhism in Sri Lanka. 

The microsite was launched by Minister Amaratunga along with Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Thailand, Kshenuka Seneviratne, President of the Thai Travel Agents Association, Thanaphon Cheewarattanaporn and Chairman, Tourism Advisory Committee, Harry Jayawardena.

Meanwhile Minister Amaratunga and the Sri Lankan delegation met President of the Association of Thai Travel Agents, Vichat Prakobgosol on the sidelines of the Travel Fair.

The two parties discussed ways and means of increasing the number of arrivals to Sri Lanka from Thailand. Thai travel agents emphasised that relaxation of visa requirements will help increase arrivals. The Thai travel agents pointed out that outbound traffic from Thailand to Japan increased by over one million when Japan granted visa on arrival to Thai nationals.

Launch of Buddhist Trail micro website

Minister John Amaratunga speaking at the launch of Buddhist trail

Launch of the Sri Lanka booth

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Sri Lanka Tourism roadshow in Chandigarh ends on high note

The Sri Lanka Tourism roadshow in Chandigarh, organized by the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB), has concluded on a high note with attendance of approximately 150 respected guests and dignitaries, not just from Chandigarh but also from neighboring cities like Ludhiana, Karnal, and others. The event started with B2B meetings, followed by presentations by the Tourism Promotion Bureau and SriLankan Airlines.

The event was attended by Ms. Upekkha Samaratunga, Minister (Commercial) for the Sri Lanka High Commission in New Delhi; Mr. Viranga Bandara, Assistant Director of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau; Mr. Chinthaka Weerasinghe, Manager- Northern India of SriLankan Airlines; and other respected dignitaries. The roadshow in Chandigarh is a part of Sri Lanka Tourism’s 7-city roadshow in India, and Chandigarh is the first city in this series.

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Mr. Sutheash Balasubramaniam, Managing Director of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, shared with media: “Sri Lanka has gained popularity and has experienced robust growth in India. We are organizing these events to explore the unique island of hospitable people to woo travel agents and increase flow of Indians from Chandigarh .The road show would enhance the visibility among the travel, trade, and consumers to position Sri Lanka as the preferred destination in Asia. Ramayana Trail sites widely scattered across the country will be of unique experience, particularly to Indians. We are confident that in 2019 a lot of more Indians will choose Sri Lanka as their preferred holiday destination.”

He further said that currently, Sri Lanka Tourism is exploring new kinds of promotions similar to that of the ongoing MasterCard campaign. Plans are underway to jointly work with airlines and tour operators to promote the destination more aggressively. The participants from Sri Lanka included Apple Holidays, Jetwing Travels (Pvt) Ltd., Asian Adventure Travel Management company, HTCEY Leisure Pvt Ltd., Walkers Tours Limited, Hamoos Travels, Karusan Travels, Luxe Asia, Green Holiday Center, Riu Hotel & Resorts, Bernard Tours (Pvt) Ltd., Lanka Reisen Ceylon (Private) Limited, Exotic Global Holidays, Esna Holidays Pvt Ltd., B.O.C. Travels (Pvt) Ltd., and Travelwind Holiday Pvt Ltd., along with Sri Lanka Tourism officials and SriLankan Airlines’ officials who showcased unique tourism offerings, latest developments, and exclusive products for the India market.

Chandigarh is one of the most important cities in terms of the outbound tourism market of India and has one of the highest per capita incomes in the country. This road show is expected to further strengthen tourism relations between travel partners of both countries and aims at increasing the traffic of HNIs and high-affluent Punjab travelers to Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka has seen substantial growth in tourist arrivals from India in the year 2017, with over 3.84 lakh Indian travelers. This makes India one of the top 5 tourist arrival markets in Sri Lanka. Also, Sri Lanka is one of the top 10 holiday destinations for Indian travelers, so with this roadshow, the Tourism Board is looking forward to extending its reach beyond metro cities of the country.

This 7-city roadshow aims at strengthening tourism relations between travel partners of both countries and is part of SLTPB’s strategic efforts to promote Sri Lanka as the most preferred short-haul holiday destinations for Indian travelers.

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Sri Lanka mulls cutting excessive airport fees to boost tourism

Sri Lanka Tourism

Sri Lanka is reviewing how to reduce airport fees to make the country more competitive with the rest of Asia and make the country more attractive to tourists Sri Lanka's tourism minister said.

"A review is being done as to how best we could reduce the landing charges, fueling charges and airport taxes," Amaratunga said. 

He admitted that excessive airport fees are being passed on to airline ticket prices to Sri Lanka, making the country less attractive for potential tourists. 

Sri Lanka has a state monopoly supplying fuel at the airport and there is no competition. When fuel supply is competitive if there are procurement irregularities and the petroleum firm pays high prices to buy fuel, it will lose out to competition. 

While many East Asian airports are also state-run, their fees are lower.

For example in a Colombo-Kuala Lumpur Colombo ticket sold by Malaysian Airlines for 34,656 rupees, the Colombo Malaysia leg is 19,918 rupees and the KL Sri Lanka leg is 14,738 rupees.

Airport embarkation fees and taxes in Malaysia is 2,874 rupees and in Sri Lanka 8,094 rupees. Airport taxes are 40 percent of the ticket price in Colombo. 

On Malindo Air, in a ticket priced at 41,348 rupees, out of taxes of 10,968 rupees, 8,094 are for Sri Lanka. 

Meanwhile Amaratunga said discussions are ongoing on other taxes as well. 

Sri Lanka also has value added tax and nation building tax on tourist products, which however is a reasonable given the need to broadbase taxes and end exemptions. 

However in many countries VAT paid by tourists is reclaimable. 

There is however a need to collect tax from the sector as many of the larger hotels that have come up have tax holidays and taxes like the NBT are simple to collect especially if booking engines could remit them directly to the state. 

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China offers more facilities to draw Sri Lankan tourists

China is offering more facilities to draw Sri Lankan tourists, China’s state owned Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday.

Chief of Consular Department of Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka, Wang Keqi briefed local travel agents on the different visa procedures in order to facilitate more tourists to visit China.

According to statistics available at the Chinese Tourism Academy, over 60,000 Sri Lankans visited China in 2016.

A forum was held in Colombo on Saturday to introduce to Sri Lankan travelers tourism services and attractive destinations in China.

In a forum conducted for Sri Lanka’s leading travel agents, organized jointly by China’s national air carrier Air China and the Travel Agents Association of Sri Lanka, Air China said it hoped to provide better services for its travelers between Colombo and Chinese cities in order to increase the number of Sri Lankan tourists.

Some of these facilities include enhanced leg space in all its air buses, more localized Sri Lankan meals and luxurious facilities for its business class travelers.

Emily Liu, General Manager of Air China, Colombo Office, addressing the forum said that since Air China entered the Sri Lankan market three years ago, traffic between Colombo and Chinese cities had increased due to the airline’s promotions and services.

However she said many parts of China still remained unexplored for Sri Lankan tourists and they hoped to increase the numbers.

“We hope to introduce Sri Lankan travel agents to other destinations other than Beijing and Shanghai so that they can promote it among Sri Lankan tourists.

China is today one of the largest economies in the world, which has a rich heritage and a history dating back to many centuries. With its modernized culture in recent years, it has a lot to offer for Sri Lankan tourists and traders,” Liu said. (Colombo Gazette)

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Sri Lanka to develop internal air transport : 5 firms come forward

Sri Lanka’s government and cabinet of ministers has given the go ahead to carry out an overhaul in the domestic aviation industry and develop it. 

“Currently, no clear policy governing civil aviation exists, hindering development due to lack of conformity with international standards,” a cabinet statement said.

To address the issues, the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation Ministry, along with National Policy and Economic Affairs Ministry, plans to make changes in terms of operating principles, airport infrastructure, management and legislations to make the industry which is currently limited to charter flights at high prices more viable. 

Following a joint call for Expression of Interests by the National Agency for Public and Private Partnerships (NAPPP) and Director General Civil Aviation, five bidders have made investment proposals. 

The Government has decided that the permits will be granted on a first come first serve basis. 

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Guidance plays a key role especially when we are not aware of the totality with regards to a process. This is the case often with Visa applications when applied for Sri Lanka ETA Visa. Our customer care executives are available round-the-clock for the sake of helping the applicants with their Sri Lanka e-visa and also a Live Chat feature is available with us for instant clarifications.

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plan your holiday to srilanka to enjoy beautiful destinations

One of the world's best five biodiversity hotspots, Sri Lanka offers not just open doors for seeing untamed life in their regular living space, yet in addition shocking scenes, delightful coastlines, the world's finest teas, and heaps of noteworthy locales with a culture going back more than 2,500 years. Indeed, this "Pearl of the Indian Ocean" has been named one of Asia's driving goals and on this Sri Lanka visit, you'll encounter the greater part of this and that's just the beginning.

Find out about Buddhism, the prevail religion in Sri Lanka, on your visits to Anuradhapura, one of the world's most seasoned consistently occupied urban areas; the journey site of Mihintale, Sri Lanka's support of Buddhism; the Temple of the Tooth, where Buddha's left canine is accepted to be revered; and Bo Tree, the world's most seasoned recorded tree (it was a sapling taken from the tree under which Buddha wound up noticeably illuminated). Wonder about Sigiriya Rock Fortress, a mountain religious community and fortification dating to the fifth century BC over an enormous magma plug for a wiped out fountain of liquid magma. At Dambulla Rock Cave Temple, appreciate the five saved natural hollows with frescoes and Buddha statues.

Keep your eyes open for local creatures on your jeep safaris in Yala National Park, a winged animal watcher's heaven with more than 200 fledgling species and in addition elephants, sloth bears, water wild ox, panthers, and then some. Likewise visit Minneriya, Kaudulla, or Hurulu Eco Park, where you may spot elephants.

Different features incorporate touring in Kandy, one of Sri Lanka's most beautiful urban communities, set in the forested slopes; a pleasant prepare travel; a visit to a tea manor; a visit to the remains at Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka's second-most old kingdom and now an UNESCO World Heritage Site; and substantially more. For esteem disapproved, shrewd explorers, this Sri Lanka visit is certain to stir and enjoyment the greater part of your faculties!

Found nearly toward the south of terrain India, Sri Lanka is a standout amongst the most intriguing get-away goals on the planet. It has everything bundled into its little size – shorelines, mountains, rainforests, tea and espresso estates or more all, individuals with enormous hearts. This Srilanka visit bundle from Bangalore is an adventure of unwinding where you will encounter three of the most treasured goals in the nation – Kandy, Galle and Negombo.

To reach the beautiful destination of srilanka do apply for Srilanka eta visa online!!!

what is the significance of srilanka tourist visa

For traveling through the amazing place of Sri-Lanka, you need to apply for a Sri lanka travel visa and this visa gives the legitimacy of two days' stay that too at free charges. But it is essential for you to carry your documentary proof.

Travellers who convey certain travel permits don't need to worry over getting a travel visa. For a suspicion, let us accept that for a brief, holders of Sri-Lankan identification couldn't get ready to clear through any European nation without having any substantial Transit Visa. At that point for this situation, the carriers would simply deny boarding. Traveling through Sri Lanka implies that an individual need to convey a Sri-Lankan online travel visa and through an online framework it can be done to effortlessly. The Sri-Lankan ETA encourages official approval for visits up to 30 days and is issued online. Individuals who needed to accept here and now visits must acquire an ETA going before to their landing in Sri Lanka.

Even more significantly ETA (Electronic Travel Authorisation) was confined by the Sri-Lankan government on first January 2012 to fortify lawful movement in their own particular nation.

The point which must be made notice is that it has been made necessary for non Sri-Lankans to convey Sri-Lankan online tourist visa.

• Essentially to decrease the worry of visitors who get bothered because of the deferral in grant of visa to investigate the island country of Sri-Lanka.

• Besides, the Department of Immigration and Emigration, Colombo, has rearranged and given the online administrations of filling ETA application structures to the vacationers.

• Tourists can apply online for Sri Lanka ETA which is completely electronic processing online submission and the approval for the same (authority to enter Sri Lanka) will be communicated via email.

how sri lanka is fast becoming a popular holiday destination for 2017

British passport holders will need to apply for an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) visa before they can enter Sri Lanka. You can obtain a short stay tourist visa if the purpose of your visit is leisure including sightseeing, visiting friends and family, medical treatment, participating in sporting events or competitions and activities relating cultural performances. There are several types of ETA short stay visa's a UK citizen can apply for. The first is the standard 30 day visa, which allows you single entry into the country. Visitors can also opt for a double entry 30 day visa.

 

Although you can obtain a visa upon arrival in Sri Lanka, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise getting this prior to departure to prevent any delays when you arrive. According to the FCO, if you overstay your visa you could face a fine, be detained or deported. If you have obtained a 30 day visa, this can be extended whilst you are over there. In order for your visa application to be approved your passport will need to be valid for at least six months from the date you arrive in Sri Lanka. And according to Sri Lankan authorities, any false or misleading statements on your visa application could mean you are denied entry into the country permanently.

                      

Brits will need to apply for an ETA visa before they head to Sri Lanka

However, obtaining an ETA does not necessarily guarantee you will be allowed to enter the country - this will be at the discretion of the immigration officers when you pass through customs.

You could be denied entry upon arrival into Sri Lanka if you have the following items in your possession:

• Dangerous drugs
• Narcotic substances
• Pornographic or séditions material
• Any items that ridicule a religious belief

The following items are restricted and you will be denied entry into Sri Lanka if you have not got a permit, which must be obtained before travel:

• Fire arms, ammunition, explosives and weapons
• Medication other than for personal use
• Goods for commercial or trade purposes except for samples
• Plants, fruits, birds and bird products

 

Tourists are forbidden to be in a picture with a historic monument in Sri Lanka

Items such as cameras, laptops and iPads, are allowed but must be declared on arrival.

Foreign currency more than US$10,000 (£8,093) must also be declared upon arrival.

Holidaymakers heading to Sri Lanka should be warned that they can only photograph the ancient monuments if they have purchased a permit to do so from the Central Cultural Fund, which has offices in Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya and Kandy.

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sri lanka electronic travel authorization

Srilanka is one of the best top tourist destination place with awesome landscapes, antiquated sanctuaries, and entrancing Buddha statues. To visit the place apply for Srilanka ETA visa by filling the application form online and the visa will be sent to you by means of email. The eTA Sri Lanka visa is accessible for tourists from India and most part of Europe.

To apply for visa click here 

Elephant Orphanage - Pinnawala Sri Lanka

On your way to Sri Lanka's kingdom in the hills a home for the majestic mammal is present and those are the great giant elephants. The road to the orphanage is covered in trees and shrubs, giving the area a jungle look like atmosphere, suitable for all indigenous Sri Lankan elephant. Most elephant species are now extinct or dead and the orphanage in Sri Lanka is highly acclaimed the world over for its commitment to the preservation of these species. Earlier Pinnawala is a village but elephants like to stay over there therefore it is famous for orphanage of elephants. Compare to now earlier there were different types of elephants and their species. Sri Lanka Pinnawala has the largest flock of captive elephants in the world. In 2011, there were 88 elephants as per counted, including in them 39 were male elephants and 49 were female elephants from last 3 generations, these creatures are living in Pinnawala. To know more about these big giant creatures every year from different countries people like to travel more. If you too are planning then go for your Sri Lanka ETA visa.

 As Sri Lanka is an Asian country Asian culture recognizes elephants as intelligent, emotional and to possess an exquisite memory. They play nicely a pivotal role in Sri Lankan traditions processions, being a part of ceremonies and cultural festivals. A number of fancily decorated and highly adorned elephants are a definite inclusion in the renowned 'Kandy Perahera' and other religious processions or cultural activities celebrated in the country. The orphanage is administered by the National Zoological Gardens of Sri Lanka Authorities which also functions as a breeding ground for the large land mammal. The baby elephants which are found in the jungles are also care by the orphaned people. These baby elephants are taken under their orphanage caring wing and protected well. The elephants are allowed to roam free in the spacious grounds of the orphanage and are well feed and cared for by the mahouts and volunteers. Large quantities of green manure, coconut leaves, tamarind, a local palm kitul leaves, jak fruit, maize and rice bran are well fed to them in their stalls. Both local and foreign guests enjoy interacting with these friendly animals. These elephants gracefully ramble to the banks of the Maha Oya River twice in a day, to quench their thirst and bathe. It becomes a heavenly habitat for the descendants of the mammoth even though it is not quite the same all year because it is their natural life cycle.

 Being one of the foremost elephant conservation projects in our today's article, a visit to this tiny island must be coupled with a visit to the orphanage. Sri Lanka travel agencies are now breeze with the emergence of Sri Lanka car rental services. If you want to know more about this place you can visit to our site ETA Visa Sri Lanka offering Sri Lanka visa online.

Basic Specifics for the Guest of Colombo

Sri Lanka capital is Colombo or we can say it is designated as Sri Lanka's capital, largest metropolis and major port of Sri Lanka all together pulls all the colors and customs that compose this island nation, squeezes them into a mixture of markets, buildings both humble and impressive and relaxing gardens that knocks them against a fine slab of beach side. Several visitors taking the flights to Colombo will adore Colombo's colonial tradition, its fine cuisine options and lavish shopping market opportunities and the race of urban buzz makes Sri Lanka an awesome rural country. In the northern region of this city is the fort area, where you will observe the huge British fort, dating back 19th century, and several residues of the previous regal power. As a guest if you are travelling to a new country you required having that particular country visa so you must have Sri Lanka visa with yourself.

  
Weather conditions and when to fly Colombo:

No matter what month of the year you pick for your holiday to Colombo and confirm your seats in the cheap flights, every time you will find the weather will be warm and humid. It is possibly wisest to avoid the monsoon rains, however: this season you found on May and August, and October and January.

The Airlines flying to Colombo:

Flights flying to Colombo from UK take about 13 hours of journey without any stopover. Various scheduled airlines that operate the flights to Colombo lead by direct as well as an indirect route. Sri Lankan Airlines, Emirates, Kuwait Airways, Cathay Pacific, Malaysia Airlines, Jet Airways, Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines fly to Colombo from all major airports of United Kingdom.

Colombo Airport:

The airport you will find in Colombo is Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) which is the airport functioning in Colombo city and receiving the international Colombo flights from all over the world. The airport caters have all essential needs of international guests including banks, money changers, internet access, cart rental firms, bars, restaurants, different shops, post offices and most important help desks and hotel reservations agencies.

In this manner there are many things to that will attract you to visit Colombo every time. There are many tourist attraction places to visit. Get your Sri Lanka visa online and enjoy the each single day of your holiday spending over there.

Justify your Winter Holidays with Sri Lanka Trip!

The dawn of the Winter Season is nearing and there is a lot of excitement about which country to choose for the holidays. It almost does not meet any logic to visit any Western country in this season as those countries will be more chilling. So the next option is to choose any country in the South East Asia which will give some warmth during this excursion.

 Out of the list of countries you would consider, it is almost inevitable that Sri Lanka would definitely be on the first five in the list. It is not fair to say that Lanka is the best destination, but it is justifiable to say that Lanka is the best destination considering the winters and how Lanka can compensate what you are trying to escape from in the west.

 

Now the first thing anyone would wish to do in winters is to get the warmth of the Sun as much as you can. Well, then Lanka has umpteen number of Beaches where one can lie down in peace under the sun for hours together and still not get disturbed by any passerby who is sharing the same beach. The noise, the market space and the rush is minimal and so there is plenty of privacy in the lap of the nature on seaside of Lanka. Also, to explore all the Destinations in Lanka such as its mystery caves, Elephant Safaris, Train journeys as well as Rain Forest Walks are a pleasure to do in the warmth of the Winter Sun instead of the Summer Sun which is not bearable to anyone visiting from a cold climate country.

 Hence, apply for Sri Lanka Visa and check for your Sri Lanka visa status and plan accordingly your favorite winter trip!