TRAVEL

Tourism identified as thrust industry

Sanjeevi Jayasuriya

The Government has identified tourism as a thrust industry and is committed to achieving Sri Lanka’s continuing economic growth and development through tourism.

It is important to fast track Sri Lanka’s further development process without any impediments, Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka President Anura Lokuhetty said.

Tourism is the key industry to be developed in Sri Lanka to enable a rapid and sustainable economic development, he said.

The Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka held its Annual General Meeting in Colombo last week.

Sri Lanka will need 40,000 rooms to achieve the set targets. With a combined total of 22,000 rooms already across the formal and informal sectors we will require an additional 18,000 rooms at an investment of about US $ 1.5 billion, he said.

A variety of significant and genuine incentives must be offered to all prospective investors by the Government to attract an investment of this magnitude. Suggested incentives which will prove attractive to these long- term investors include concessionary financing and tax for lending institutions which provide debt financing for development on this scale.

A major challenge the country must overcome will be to find the most strategic, appropriate and suitable locations for these new investments.

The Government must play a major role in this task assisting with required land.

It is important to have a professionally efficient workforce to provide the level of services expected by international tourists. The focus should on the new trend in tourism such as health tourism, boutique hotels and eco hotels to explore niche markets.

“Sri Lanka is an incredibly compact yet understated country. It has an abundance of natural beauty unmatched by any other on this planet.

We should place priority on allowing aesthetic beauty blossom by developing the upper echelon boutique hotel sector which will naturally attract the high-end customers bringing more profitable income from a lower number of tourists”, he said.

A comprehensive travel system should be in place with necessary upgrading of infrastructure such as road, rail and domestic and international air traffic. The industry needs to possess quality human resources to cater to the needs.

The Ceylon Hotel School and other regional hotel schools must be strengthened to match the upcoming human resource requirement. Possibilities must be looked in to include tourism as a vocational subject in school curriculum and upgrading the Sri Lanka Institute of Hotel Management to the internationally recognized standards of a national university, Lokuhetty said.

‘Nature Odyssey’ wins Presidential Award

Nature Odyssey the adventure and wildlife arm of John Keells Hotels Group and Walkers Tours won the prestigious Presidential Awards for Travel and Tourism for ‘Best Nature and Adventure Operator’ for the second consecutive year.

The team, which specializes in catering to niche nature and adventure seekers, are on a continuous pursuit of ‘new experiences’ that better showcase the amazing natural heritage of Sri Lanka to its guests. Nature Odyssey operates travel counters at most John Keells Hotels, offering wildlife and nature based excursions ranging from village treks, bird watching excursions and leopard and elephant safaris.

Currently the most popular activity is whale watching off the coast of Mirissa. Nature Odyssey also initiated whale watching in the East Coast with the launch of Chaaya Blu Trincomalee. The team continues to understand the needs of its market consisting of adventure and wildlife travellers and providing them with unforgettable, authentic wildlife or adventure experiences.

Manager (Marketing Development) Chitral Jayatillake said, “The close knit team was instrumental in winning this award with the outstanding work that they have done with relation to wildlife and adventure based tourism in Sri Lanka.”

Whittals Travel employees win awards

Keerthi Wijesinghe of Whittals Travel won the ‘Best Guide’ award at the recently concluded Presidential Awards for Travel and Tourism.

“Travel guides are like journalists. We need to constantly update ourselves and improve our knowledge on all areas relevant to both Sri Lanka and the world,” said Wijesinghe.

“This is a profession full of challenges and it’s when things go wrong that you are really tested. But life itself is a challenge and we should be able to overcome any situation,” he said.

A veteran tourist guide lecturer and a Resort Representative for Kuoni France, Wijesinghe has an impressive career of over 30 years in the industry behind him. Having been interested in French and Russian literature and history from a young age, he developed an interest in the travel trade through his first job as an audio visual technical operator at the French Embassy. Wijesinghe launched his career as a freelance National Tourist Guide Lecturer in 1978, joining Baurs Travels - the ground handling agent for Kuoni International at the time.

When Kuoni International’s ground handling agency transferred from Baurs to Whittalls Boustead (Travel) Ltd in 1993, Wijesinghe started working for John Keells Group.

Pramodh Welagedara of Walkers Tours was awarded the Best Chauffeur Guide at the Presidential Awards for Travel and Tourism 2009. With an impressive career spanning over 20 years, his interest in tourism and driving led him into the travel trade. Beginning as a driver and subsequently going onto qualify himself through the Chauffeur Guide Lecturer Course conducted by the Tourist Board, Welagedara has been with the company for 17 years.

“I believe that as children are the future generation of our land, fostering responsible tourism and enabling them to appreciate, enjoy and take forward the tourist industry in our beautiful island Sri Lanka, whilst maintaining our values and culture is the duty of each and every citizen of this country,” he said.

‘Sri Lanka Tourism well poised’

Sri Lanka Tourism is well poised to achieve its targets and tourist arrivals have recorded continuous growth in the recent past.

This is a positive trend and Government should have in place pragmatic regulations to facilitate and attract tourists to the country, Economic Development Deputy Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said.

The tourism industry contributes immensely for the economic development and it has added value to the related services such as infrastructure, construction, agriculture and telecommunication, he said.

The Sri Lanka Inbound Tour Operators Association (SLAITO) held its Annual General Meeting last week in Colombo. The Economic Development Ministry promotes a one-stop-shop for tourist industry where it will be convenient to obtain industry related facilities under one roof.

The hosting of IIFA has brought much benefits to the country and it has created an ideal platform to build in attracting increased tourist arrivals.

This mega event disseminated the message that Sri Lanka is safe, stable and peaceful.

Not only tourism, but investment sector too would benefit in the long run, Abeywardena said.

The tourism industry is a strong pillar in economic development and would be aimed at making the sector second largest foreign exchange generator in the country.

The legal framework which is an impediment to the industry will be changed to enforce new laws shortly.

The industry will be given the Government support to become a driving force in the economy, he said.

Tourism needs to move forward with all stakeholders shouldering the responsibility collectively.

The time is opportune to build the industry which suffered for the last 30 years, Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators President Nilmin Nanayakkara said.

-SJ