Exploring the east with Cinnamon’s #TBCasia

TBCasia 2016, a six-day event centred on travel blogging organised by Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts together with SriLankan Airlines in collaboration with the Professional Travel Bloggers Association (PTBA), culminated in a conference and awards ceremony held at the Cinnamon Grand last week. Held from 2-7 June, TBCasia 2016 saw the participation of 60 international bloggers from around the world who had each amassed a sizeable following on social media across various platforms. Daily FT too was invited to take part in a five-day pre-conference familiarisation tour that saw a team of 12 bloggers discovering the East coast of Sri Lanka for the first time, from Arugam Bay and the Kumana National Park, to Batticaloa and Passikudah and Pigeon Island off Trincomalee. What follows is an account of this excursion.

Text and Pix by Himal Kotelawala

When yours truly was requested to cover a five-day tour of the East Coast of Sri Lanka with a group of wide-eyed foreigners on the invitation of a large corporate entity, the cynic in me couldn’t help but let out an audible groan. As exciting as the prospect of exploring the entire eastern coastal belt was (free of charge at that), the idea of hopping from one hotel to another with a bunch of strangers, eating overtly fancy hotel food, a sizeable portion of the trip spent on the road just getting from A to B and, worst of all, as a journalist, feeling obligated to say nice things about said corporate entity at the end of the trip frankly didn’t appeal to me. But as someone who had severely and repeatedly been bitten by the travel bug, my curiosity got the better of me and in the end I decided to say yes. And I can now say, quite honestly, it was one of the better decisions I’d made in a while.

 I’ve travelled to every corner of this beautiful island and I thought I’d seen everything it had to offer, but the things I saw on this trip truly took me by surprise, in the best way possible.

We started off at the Cinnamon Lakeside in the early hours of Monday, 2 June. Sixty internet-popular travel bloggers from around the world had gathered in the lobby. They had all been invited by Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts to take part in TBCasia 2016, a six-day event centred on travel blogging organised by Cinnamon together with SriLankan Airlines in collaboration with the Professional Travel Bloggers Association (PTBA).

The bloggers had been split into four groups, each to be transferred to a different part of the country as part of a five-day pre-conference excursion:  namely the East, the South, the Central Hills and the Cultural Triangle. 

Journey to the hills

After a quick phone call to my liaison, I managed to locate my group: an appropriately diverse group of 12 travel writers, photographers and video-bloggers, mostly from the US and Europe and one Indian. “Right, they look harmless enough,” I thought, and we set off.

The group was taken by three-wheeler to the Fort Railway Station where it boarded the train to Kandy. Thankfully, it was a weekday morning so the train wasn’t crowded. In any case, the organisers had booked a separate compartment for the travellers, with plenty of seats to spare. (Which, it turned out, was unnecessary, as pretty much all of the bloggers, blissfully unaware of the daily hardships faced by the average local commuter, opted to stand on the footboard, taking selfies with their GoPro cameras along the way). 

One of the bloggers, Kristin Addis from California, USA, told Daily FT later that day that the train ride was one of the highlights of the tour.

“It’s so nice to go hang out by the door. It’s dangerous, sure, but back home in the US, they would never let you do that. It was quite fun, actually. You’re obviously taking a risk, but I enjoyed it,” she said.

The train arrived in Kandy at 11.30 am. We were then transported by standard tour operator bus to the Victoria Golf Club in Digana, about an hour’s drive from the Hill Capital. The 17-year-old hotel, now a Cinnamon property, is a network of chalets scattered throughout a 500-acre plot of land just behind the Victoria reservoir and, in addition to the expansive golf courses, is home to an abundance of flora and fauna right up to the edge of the reservoir.

The first day of the trip was spent mostly relaxing, with a guided nature trail up to a nearby hill overlooking the reservoir thrown in. The dam was visible in the distance, with the mountains of central Sri Lanka providing a breathtaking backdrop.

Janicke Hansen of Norway was pretty thrilled to be part of the walk. Spotting a live snake in the wild was a highlight for her, she told Daily FT.

“My first day here has been very exciting. Just the kind of travel I like - to learn new things, learn about how to survive in nature,” she said.

Mirdula Dwivedi of India, who is on her second visit to Sri Lanka, concurred.

“This is my first trip to Kandy and beyond. I’d only been to the south before. For me the highlights were the train ride and the evening walk, which was particularly useful,” she said.

Dinner was served following an hour of R&R, during which the visitors were treated to a cultural show that included, to everyone’s shock and delight, a traditional thovil dance with fire rituals. Things wrapped up at around 10.00 p.m. and it was off to bed.

Arugam Bay

Everyone was up and about by 7.00 the next morning. Tea, followed by a quick breakfast, and it was time to hit the road again. Destination: Arugam Bay.

The trip to Pottuvil was long and uneventful, barring a stopover for thambili (where a couple of the bloggers got to play with their drones and 4K cameras over a paddy field) and a quick breather on the famous 18-wanguwa. We reached Arugam Bay at around 2.00 p.m., and the group checked into Bey Vista and Hideaway, two hotels located directly opposite each other on either side of the road facing the bay. (Cinnamon does not have any properties in this area at the moment).

The plan was to go on a safari in the Kumana National Park nearby that evening, but as we had arrived later than anticipated and lunch would take another hour at least, it was decided to spend the evening chilling by the beach with the safari squeezed into next morning’s schedule.

The surfing season was just beginning in Arugam Bay and pros and beginners alike, both local and foreign, could be spotted along the bay riding the waves. We made our way to the side of the cove, one of the more popular surfing spots in the area, and spent a good hour or two just watching the surfers, waiting to catch the sunset. And what an amazing sunset it was. When you say east coast, you normally think sunrise, but trust me, nothing compares to the majesty of seeing the sun disappear behind trees lining the outer rim of the cove.

“It was great going on the beach. I was chatting to a fisherman [in Arugam Bay].It was good to get a local, authentic perspective on life here. The same with surfers, it was really nice to see that old and modern mix,” British blogger Paul Farrugia of globalhelpswap.com told Daily FT.

Dinner was served at the Hideaway, after which this writer along with three other bloggers went in search of a rumoured party on the beach, only to find ourselves at a deserted dance floor facing the bay several hundred metres from the hotel. The four of us were literally the only people at the “party,” but the music was great, so no complaints here.

It was another early start the next morning, as we had to race against the planet’s rotation to try and catch the sunrise from the top of the Kudumbigala hill. But alas, by the time we made our way there, the sun had already risen, so one group went in search of elephants in the Kumana National Park while the rest of us decided to check out the Kudumbigala monastery anyway. Though the sun had beat us to it, the view was still amazing and the visitors to the island were suitably mesmerised by the acres of forest down below. This was my second time there and I was still blown away by the sheer magnificence of it all.

‘Stunning landscapes’

Mridula Dwivedi of traveltalesfromindia.in said, “Sri Lanka is very scenic. Since I’m from India, some of it feels familiar. Some of the food, like dhal, vegetables, so I don’t feel like I’m very far off, but in terms of landscapes, it’s quite stunning. The hike to the temple was beautiful. I almost skipped it, but I’m glad I went on it. I enjoyed it a lot.”

Around 9.00 a.m., those of us who opted to go to Kudumbigala were soon after taken by jeep for a three-hour safari in Kumana. This was a bit of a disappointment, however. Barring one elephant along the way, not much big game was observed. However, Kumana is better known for its birds than for its leopards, and true to its reputation, the place was crowded with hundreds of different species. The big, marshy lake home to a multitude of storks, pelicans, eagles and other species was particularly interesting. The lack of elephants was more than made up for by the countless herds of buffalo spread out across the park.

“The safari was long. We were very unlucky, but the water buffalos were pretty cool,” said German aviation blogger Josh Cahill of gotravelyourway.com. 

We had lunch at Bey Vista hotel and it was time to head off again. This time to Batticaloa. The journey was, again, long and uneventful, but the promise of a night of R&R in Cinnamon’s East Lagoon Hotel was enough to keep everyone happy.

“I feel like we spent too much time on the road, but the activities we’ve been to so far were nice and more than made up for it,” Elodie Culoma of the French blog melolimparfaite.com told Daily FT.

Her American partner and co-blogger Sidney Burks echoed her sentiments.

“We’ve spent a lot of time travelling, so it’s kind of hard to get an in-depth experience. A lot of time was spent in the bus more than actually seeing something, and a quarter of a day sleeping, two hours eating; so there was a bit of an imbalance,” he said.

This was, however, to be expected, as traversing the entirety of the Sri Lankan east coast in a matter of days is no mean feat.

A short walk across the Kattankudy town in Batticaloa to experience local street food was met with a lot of enthusiasm by the bloggers. It was unanimously agreed that the egg hoppers followed by ginger tea at a stall in the heart of Kattankudy was some of the best Sri Lankan food the bloggers had tried since they’d arrived in the country.

“The food has been good so far. I can’t handle the spice though,” said Sidney.

Josh had an interesting take on the spiciness that Sri Lankan food is famous for. 

“I can handle it, a little bit. The problem is I get heartburn if I eat too much spice. My nose starts running. It’s very interesting. I like the taste. But the taste vanishes once the spice hits your tongue. It’s a short-lived pleasure,” he said.

Some of the bloggers had expected Batticaloa, and the entire east in general, to have more visible battle scars, considering it had been at the epicentre of the country’s nearly three decade civil war.

“Somehow I was expecting more drama, more background, more places that reminded you of [the war]. In Afghanistan, there are reminders everywhere. But not here,” said Josh.

In Sri Lanka’s case this is very deliberate, I pointed out.

“I get it. People need to move on,” agreed Josh.

Paul, and his wife and blogging partner Karen Sargent who had travelled in Sri Lanka rather extensively, had yet to properly experience the country’s east, and this trip, they told me, was a great opportunity for them to do so.

“We’ve always wanted to see Eastern Sri Lanka. We’ve already done most of the country. We’ve heard that it’s very different from the rest of the country, and from what we’re seeing, it really is. It’s pretty good to travel in places that need tourism and help the local economy,” said Paul.

“Even just today as we were driving on the bus we saw all the different religious communities living together. Now we’re in a Muslim town, but I saw Hindu temples, we’ve gone past Buddhist temples. It just shows you how quickly Sri Lanka has come in a little time. It’s good to see people getting on with life and prospering,” he added.

Trincomalee

The last two days of the trip were reserved for Trincomalee, arguably the most beautiful part of the entire east coast; barring, perhaps, Passikudah, which we stopped by on the way. Lunch was served at the Anilana hotel, facing some of the most picturesque stretches of beach in the island. However, rumours abound that the corals of Passikudah are suffering heavy damage. According to a naturalist who spoke to Daily FT in Colombo following the trip, this was due to El Nino effects and global warming, resulting in rising temperatures in ocean currents.

The last hotel check-in for the trip was on Sunday evening at the beautiful TrincoBlu by Cinnamon. It is located on the Back Bay of Trinco, facing near-still waters that you can wade in for hundreds of feet without fear of drowning or being swept off by currents. A few of us took a dip in these tranquil waters before setting off for dinner and cocktails on the beach.

The next day, the final day of the tour, was devoted to exploring the treasure trove that is the Indian Ocean. An early morning boat trip on the waters off Koneswaran, on the outer edge of Trinco’s world famous natural harbour was a fantastic opportunity to spot dolphins. We were lucky enough to spot several spinner dolphins surfacing to breathe.

To me, personally, the highlight of the entire trip was the couple of hours we spent snorkelling in Pigeon Island, a tiny islet a few kilometres off Nilaweli Beach. I had snorkelled here before, but not to this extent. 

Cinnamon provided us with high-end snorkelling gear including flippers and a trusted guide, which meant front-row seats to the breathtaking corals and fish in the vicinity. Paul and Karen were fortunate enough to spot a reef shark, while the rest of us got to swim with some of the most colourful fish I had ever seen. It was, however, rather disheartening to see that some of the coral had been damaged resulting in what is known as a ‘bleaching’ effect. This was, again, the result of global warming and El Nino effects, the guide explained to us.

By 2.00 p.m. it was time for lunch, the last meal and time to pack our bags. By 4.15 p.m. we had arrived at the Trinco air base to board the Heli Tours flight back to Colombo. In just 45 minutes we had landed in Ratmalana and it was time to say goodbye. 

Over the course of the previous five days, I had made some good friends and had one of the best travel experiences of my life. My initial scepticism had disappeared and had been replaced with a longing and ache to hit the road again, and I’m now considering getting my own travel blog up and running. Getting 60 travel bloggers to explore the entire island in just five days – and mind you, these are people who have travelled the world and are not that easy to please – is no mean feat and could very well have turned into a logistical nightmare. Kudos to Cinnamon for pulling it off. And, the best part, I don’t feel the slightest bit obligated to say it.

Mudadeniya says Cinnamon TBCasia nod to growing influence of digital platforms

It is not an exaggeration, nor an obligation on the part of this paper to say that barring a few minor hiccups, the Cinnamon TBCasia conference and tour was indeed a well-planned, timely and much needed endeavour with regard to promoting tourism in the country. We caught up with Cinnamon Vice President and Head of Brand Marketing Dileep Mudadeniya who joined us on the trip for a brief chat.

Q: Why did Cinnamon decide to put together such a large-scale event?

A: We thought we needed to be present in the digital platform. In a time where referral marketing is coming to the limelight – especially in travel and tourism – bloggers can play a large role. We got in touch with the PTBA and signed a five-year exclusive agreement for Asia in 2013. The first event was in 2014. We improved upon it in 2016 to incorporate [travel blogger] awards.

Q: What was the selection process like?

A: We went through 700-900 people; narrowed it down to 30 people – for the awards. And selected a further 30 to represent the geographic interests of Sri Lanka.

Q: Who was on the panel of judges?

A: There were 10 people on the panel of judges including myself, the CEO of PATA, Sally David from TripAdvisor, etc. 

Q: How important is a tour like this for tourism?

A: Even though we don’t have hotels in the east, we believe that this area needs to be further promoted. That’s what we do with the IFC and the Australian Aid organisation. (These organisations partnered with Cinnamon in organising the East coast tour).

Q: How do you think this leg of the tour would help the east coast, in particular?

A: We wanted to bring the bloggers here and make sure they see the product and push digital content for people who wish to come see it. This area needs that kind of exposure, because compared to the rest of the island tourism in Batticaloa, Arugam Bay, etc. needs further infrastructure improvement as well as image improvement.

Q: How has your experience been, personally, travelling with hardened travel bloggers?

A: These are a great bunch of people. They have a lot of energy, and a different way of looking at things. I think they give a different perspective compared to what we see in terms of travelling.

Q: Lastly, now that you have had a taste of digital marketing, would you say it has an edge on traditional marketing?

A: Absolutely. Traditional marketing is almost dead. It still exists, of course, but it’s very expensive. It still plays a role, I don’t deny it. But if you look at ROI, word of mouth, etc., [digital marketing goes a long way]. I was told that a Twitter impression itself is 6.5 million. We believe this will further improve.