SriLankan entices local clients with series of seasonal offers

Friday, 24 October 2014 00:06 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

SriLankan will introduce a host of seasonal offers in order to give its local clientele the opportunity to experience several destinations in the Far East including Shanghai, Beijing, Kunming and Bangkok at affordable fares. Special Economy class return fares to Shanghai and Beijing will start from Rs. 46,300 before taxes while SriLankan will also introduce a fourth Chinese city on its global route map when it begins operations to Kunming on 1 December. Economy class return fares to Kunming will be Rs. 21,600. The airline will also introduce a pre-seasonal family package with Business Class return tickets from Bangkok starting at Rs. 49,200. The airline will offer special fares to Mumbai as well with economy class return airfare from Rs. 10,000. SriLankan Airlines Regional Manager for Sri Lanka and Maldives Saminda Perera stated that the national carrier is looking at giving local clients a complete experience and not just cheaper airfares. He explained that SriLankan was willing to take a hit on its revenue streams to give Sri Lankans a chance to travel to some of these destinations. “People prefer to associate with the airline rather than a travel agent because there is a certain level of trust. So we thought we should give our own people an opportunity to explore some of these places,” he said. He said that the airline introduced these offers after picking destinations that appealed to the Sri Lankan market. The special offers to Mumbai would coincide with the Sri Lankan cricket team’s tour of India with the first ODI being played in the city. SriLankan is also looking at introducing a package to Australia on a code-share with Qantas from Singapore. Daily flights to Australia would include flights to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Perera explained that if the response was positive, SriLankan would consider offering special deals during next year’s cricket World Cup in that region. Meanwhile, SriLankan will also introduce special baggage offers allowing passengers to and from Europe to carry an extra 15kg of baggage each way at no extra charge. Economy Class passengers would therefore be able to carry up to 45kg while Business Class passengers will be allowed 55kg. SriLankan Airlines Manager Sales (Agency/Passenger) Fawzan Fareid stated that this was the first time the airline has extended such an offer while the deal would be valid for tickets purchased before 31 December in Sri Lanka, for passengers travelling out of the island between 15 September and 31 December, irrespective of their return date. “We decided to offer this deal to target those visiting their relatives in Europe. The winter in those parts are difficult and warm clothes are heavy, so we thought that this offer would be perfect,” he said. SriLankan Holidays will offer comprehensive packages to Kuala Lumpur for the Malaysian MotoGP, Abu Dhabi for the F1 races, a tour of the Universal Studios in Singapore and a special deal to Singapore to watch Mariah Carey live in concert. Apart from the airfare and baggage offers, SriLankan Holidays will also introduce several online inbound offers targeting the Middle Eastern market. The special packages will aim to promote Sri Lanka as a destination with luxury getaways on offer throughout the country.