Sri Lanka Tourism leverages ATM for major push in ME

Sri Lanka Tourism leveraged the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) complemented by three road shows, B2B and industry meetings in Dubai last week in a major push in the Middle East market.

Sri Lanka was showcased as an attractive holiday destination at the 24th Arabian Travel Market (ATM) which took place from 22 to 25 April at the Dubai International Exhibition & Convention Centre. Sri Lanka participated for the 16th consecutive year at the event with more than 60 industry participants.

The event coincided with three roadshows which were held from 17 to 19 April in UAE by the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau in collaboration with the Sri Lanka consulate in Dubai. This was the first time SLTPB organised three consecutive roadshows in UAE. 

The attractive Sri Lanka pavilion at the ATM was the centre of attraction and drew large crowds. It was declared open by Minister of Tourism Development and Christian Religious Affairs, John Amaratunga. The Sri Lankan delegation to the ATM included Senior Advisor to the Minister Felix Rodrigo, Sri Lanka’s Consul General in Dubai and Northern Emirates Charitha Yattegoda, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Managing Director Sutheash Balasubramanium and Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Assistant Director Ajantha Rathnayake.

A press conference was held parallel to the travel fair to keep the international media well informed about the new developments in the tourism industry in Sri Lanka and the many attractions for the Middle Eastern travellers. The Minister also held discussions with a cross section of industry professionals on boosting bilateral tourism traffic.  

The B2B meetings which were held on the sidelines of the fair proved to be fruitful and had a positive impact especially in encouraging investment opportunities in Sri Lanka. 

The Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2018 is the largest annual exhibition for the tourism trade in the Middle East. Sri Lanka Tourism has been participating at this event since 2003 along with members of the travel and tourism industry. ATM now facilitates $2.4 billion in industry deals and attracts 2,800 exhibitors from 86 countries and over 26,000 influential visitors.

The Arabian Market is important for Sri Lanka as it helps to source a large number of visitors from the region. During the month of March 2018 there were 15,894 tourist arrivals from the Middle East.