Sri Lanka’s free visa to Chinese tourists announced at Beijing
The Morning: Sri Lanka’s Embassy in Beijing announced the free visa regime introduced by Sri Lanka for seven countries including China, in a promotional event at the Chancery premises on 15 December.
Addressing the gathering, in view of introducing the free visa regime, Charge d’ Affairs a.i. K. K. Yoganaadan invited the outbound travel companies and local media to work in coordination with the Embassy of Sri Lanka to give wide publicity on Sri Lanka as a favored travel destination among the Chinese public.
Stating that SALT Agency, a key Search Engine Optimization specialist, has named Sri Lanka as the fifth fastest growing tourism destination in 2024, the Charge d’Affaires a.i. urged Chinese travelers to select Sri Lanka as their holiday destination in the forthcoming Spring Festival holidays.
In a special video message by the Chairman of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) Chalaka Gajabahu was screened at the event, in which he said that Sri Lanka is ready to welcome Chinese tourists and hopes that China will become the top country to send tourists to Sri Lanka. After the presentation, there was an engaging quizz session in which the winners were presented with an exquisite gift of Ceylon tea.
Promotional videos were screened during the event showcasing the enchanting beauty of Sri Lanka’s tourist destinations, the rich heritage of Ceylon tea, and the brilliance of Sri Lankan gems. A special display of tea was arranged at the event where invitees savored the renowned flavors of Ceylon tea.
Over 60 guests representing the Chinese outbound travel industry and local media participated in the event.
OSL take:
Chinese are among the five key source countries for tourists to Sri Lanka. Following the global pandemic, Chinese tourists are once again travelling the world and they have once again planned trips to Sri Lanka. Local tourism authorities have been conducting promotional campaigns in many cities in China along with other key foreign source markets. It is as part of this promotional campaigns that Sri Lanka has proposed a visa free scheme for Chinese tourists to Sri Lanka. The overall growth in tourist arrivals to the country has resulted in the expansion of business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, especially in the leisure and hospitality sectors. There are also opportunities in the development of infrastructure and supplementary infrastructure facilities required by the tourism industry. Given the growth and business potential in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, fire businesses/investors could confidently explore the expanding opportunities in the industry. With the increase in Chinese travelers to Sri Lanka and the expanding opportunities in the country, Chinese businesses/investors could confidently explore the growing opportunities in Sri Lanka. They could also look at forming partnerships or joint ventures with local businesses with the aim of further expansion. Sri Lanka’s geographical positioning in the Indian Ocean and the many trade agreements as well as trade concessions enjoyed with other countries makes Sri Lanka an ideal business destination in the region.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20240110/Z_1 |