Sri Lanka Tourism and SriLankan Airlines tie up at ITB

Monday, 9 March 2015 00:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

From left: SriLankan Airlines Regional Manager UK, Europe and North America, Kaushal Seneviratne, Director Promotions Europe Manoj Gunawardena, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Chairman Dr. Rohantha Athukorala, SriLankan Airlines Global Sales Head Lal Perera and General Manager Sales Saminda Perera In the wake of the Sri Lanka Tourism and Tea Board tie-up last week, the former has forged a partnership with SriLankan Airlines. The Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau claimed that Sri Lanka Tourism and SriLankan Airlines had previously worked in isolation instead of with greater coordination. In that context the latest union was described as “historic”. The two have agreed to a mutually beneficial joint marketing program at a meeting at ITB in Berlin. “Together, the global promotional budget will exceed Rs. 5 billion which will give a strong push to the agenda of both State entities and a big win for brand Sri Lanka given that research has revealed that connectivity is a key driver in the promotional push to increase travellers to a destination,” Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Chairman Dr. Rohantha Athukorala said. SriLankan Airlines Global Sales Head Lal Perera said: “We are glad for this breakthrough partnership as the synergy will help the country improve impact globally.” Athukorala also said that Sri Lanka Tourism is reaching out and linking with key institutions, such as SriLankan Airlines and Sri Lanka Tea Board, to make the country become a power brand globally. He said that the Ceylon Tea Bar was a hit at ITB 2015 in Berlin. The overall awareness which was stressed upon was to always ask for pure Ceylon tea with a lion logo and the need to develop this further by bringing in a business model. Sri Lanka Tourism will host a Ceylon Tea Bar this week in China and next week in Moscow. “It’s all about creating awareness about the ‘one island - thousand treasures’ positioning,” Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Chief Athukorala added.