Sri Lanka ready to welcome Chinese Groups
• Large Chinese incentive group visits Sri Lanka
• A group of 134 Chinese tourists recently arrived in Sri Lanka from Shanghai, China.
• The visiting Chinese tourists are part of a group of over 1,575 passengers, which makes it one of the biggest incentive groups to have visited Sri Lanka.
• The tour was organised by SriLankan Airlines’ Shanghai office in collaboration with Lanka Sportsrizen, which provided the ground handling facilities.
• Their visit included a sightseeing tour covering the main tourist attractions in the country including Sigiriya, Dambulla, Kandy, Bentota, Galle and Colombo.
• The number of Chinese tourists to Sri Lanka increased 31.5% to 16,004 in May, which contributes to the rise of total tourist arrival to 125,044, up 10.1% compared to the same period last year, data released by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) showed.
• It is reported that nearly 1.8 million tourists arrived in Sri Lanka last year contributing 2.98 billion U.S. dollars of earnings to government revenues, while Sri Lanka government hopes to attract at least 3 million tourists by the end of this year, and it has set a target of 4 million by 2020.
• The authentic Chinese restaurants in the island are ready to welcome Chinese groups while simultaneously spreading Chinese culture and tradition among Sri Lankans.
• In addition to the great quality and taste these restaurants offer, they also represent the diverse regions of China and present dishes which are only made by original Chinese chefs representing those regions.
OSL Take:
Over recent years, more than 50 authentic Chinese restaurants, owned and run by Chinese chefs and management, have been established, mainly in the Sri Lankan capital, in order to promote authentic Chinese cuisine.
Although initially the restaurants catered to a predominantly Chinese community, they have fast gained popularity among locals and foreign tourists who often visit the popular restaurants, due to the quality and authenticity of the food.
The restaurants also promote Chinese culture and traditions, which have also been widely embraced by the locals.
“Most of the dishes we serve in my restaurant have a Chinese history to them. It is authentic Chinese food and it is prepared with the best ingredients,” Zhang Hong, owner of the Fortune Boat Chinese Restaurant, in Colombo told Xinhua.
One of the most popular dishes the restaurant offers is Beijing Roasted Duck, more popularly here known as “Peking Duck,” which has been a staple in China since the imperial era.
Peking Duck, although originally introduced for the restaurant’s Chinese customers, has now become a popular dish among the locals who often visit the restaurant.
Another popular restaurant in Colombo serving authentic Chinese food is the Moon River restaurant.
Several original Chinese dishes are prepared by 2 Chinese chefs, who are in Sri Lanka to promote Chinese cuisine.
The food has fast gained popularity due to its great taste and uniqueness. One of its dishes, “Shanghai Style Pork with Egg,” is a local favorite.
Other Chinese restaurants in Colombo, which have topped the list of the “Best Chinese Restaurants” are: China Manor House, Huasui, Tong Ni BBQ, Sunlight Garden Chinese Seafood Restaurant, Tang Dynasty and Grand Beijing.
The restaurants also offer Chinese-style seafood such as crabs, different types of fish, prawns and lobsters. The dishes are fresh, well-seasoned, cooked for hours and presented in an original Chinese style.
In short, Sri Lanka is welcoming the increasing numbers of Chinese tourists and wants to impress and welcome their repeat visits in to the island.
In fact, tourist arrival from China to Sri Lanka increased 31.5 percent in May, as China remained as 2nd largest source of tourists to Sri Lanka.
The number of Chinese tourists to Sri Lanka increased to 16,004 in May, which contributes to the rise of total tourist arrival to 125,044, up 10.1% compared to the same period last year, data released by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) showed.
In the first 5 months of this year, 846,229 tourists visited the island, compared to the 714,584 people visited in the corresponding period of 2015, recording an increase of 18.4%.
India kept the position of largest market with 34,259 visitors, a 7.9% growth from the previous year. 26,826 people visited from Western Europe, registering a 9.5% increase in arrivals during the month.
It is reported that nearly 1.8 million tourists arrived in Sri Lanka last year contributing 2.98 billion U.S. dollars of earnings to government revenues, while Sri Lanka government hopes to attract at least 3 million tourists by the end of this year, and it has set a target of 4 million by 2020.
The island nation’s tourism industry has seen an upward trend since the end of the civil war in May, 2009. Last year, Sri Lanka was able to attract 200,000 Chinese tourists. The government maintained that cooperation between China and Sri Lanka had witnessed “a very big development”, Xinhua reports.
In this backdrop, potential Chinese investors could seek the business matchmaking expertise of OSL to launch their businesses in the island paradise.
Feel free to talk to the biz-friendly OSL Team now, to learn more on tourism and other growing sectors in Sri Lanka.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/09082016/Z-3 |