Sri Lanka Tourism opens a public page on Chinese Facebook

Monday, 28 November 2011 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Sri Lanka Tourism opened a public page on Chinese Facebook, www.renren.com, with the ambition of promoting its product among the Chinese nationals.

This step has been taken at a time when tourist arrivals in the island have nearly exceeded targets.

With the continued efforts of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Sri Lanka Tourism was able to achieve 750,000 arrivals from the forecasted target of the year 2011. As the booming economy of China has led to a creation of a rich middle class and extensive per capita spending, targeting the Chinese travel market would be an ideal opportunity for Sri Lanka Tourism to market country.

Thus, opening a public page in www.renren.com is a key aspect in promoting a destination via social media and creating awareness.

Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Managing Director Rumy Jauffer said: “We have already implemented a number of programs targeting the broad tourist base in China, with the support of Chinese tour agencies.”

As the vision of the Government of Sri Lanka is to attract over 2.5 million tourists by 2016, promoting Sri Lanka Tourism to the potential Chinese market is definitely a decisive factor, as both countries share a large number of mutual interests.