Sri Lanka makes fresh push for more Dutch tourists

• Embassy in Netherlands holds briefing for key stakeholders

The Embassy of Sri Lanka in the Netherlands in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB), recently organised a successful briefing for over 50 tourism industry representatives including Dutch Government officials, media professionals, tour operators, travel agents, travel bloggers, social media influencers, travel journalists, TV professionals, and airline representatives.

The event which took place on 19 April, at the Embassy was aimed at highlighting the latest developments in Sri Lanka including valuable insights on the country’s unique attractions and experiences.

In her welcoming remarks, Ambassador Aruni Ranaraja expressed her gratitude to the industry representatives for their continued support and accentuated the uniqueness of Sri Lanka as a combination of the “Whole of Asia in one Island”, which is compact, diverse, accessible and is now popular.

Menken Maritime founder Bernard Menken relayed his decades’ long friendship with Sri Lanka on business cooperation and stated Sri Lanka is his preferred holiday destination, recalling Dutch history and its rich cultural heritage as a major attraction for the Dutch travellers.

Andrew Travel Company Sri Lanka Managing Director Mahen Kariyawasan during his presentation described the uniqueness of Sri Lanka’s tourism product and stated that Sri Lanka is back on track once again for welcoming all demographics of travellers. Emirates Airlines Sales Executive Mathieu Hastman was hopeful that Emirates, currently operating two flights daily to Colombo, will soon be back to pre-COVID regularity, offering greater connectivity between Netherlands and Sri Lanka.

The tourism industry representatives in attendance expressed their appreciation for the timely briefing and their eagerness to resume travel to Sri Lanka. They commended the Government’s efforts to prioritise the safety and well-being of tourists and pledged to promote Sri Lanka as a top tourist destination in the Netherlands.

During an evening of Sri Lankan delight, a return air ticket with a seven-day full board package was awarded to the lucky winner of the raffle draw, courtesy Emirates, and Andrew Travel Company.