Interim tourism promotional campaigns to kick off in August

Sanjaya Niroshan Pic by Nisal Baduge

The Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau is set to launch a series of targeted interim promotional campaigns starting early August, serving as a strategic bridge before rolling out a comprehensive long-term global marketing initiative.

These interim digital and public relations campaigns will span six to eight months and are designed to immediately stimulate tourist arrivals in key source markets.

Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Managing Director Sanjaya Niroshan detailed the rollout sequence, confirming that the initial thrust will target the Oceania region. 

“First, we are going to the Australia and New Zealand markets. The procurement process for this is already complete,” Niroshan stated, noting that the bureau expects to finalize the agency orders by next week.

Following the initial launch in Oceania, the bureau will swiftly expand its marketing footprint into primary European markets. The procurement procedures for the United Kingdom and Germany are currently in their final stages. Niroshan noted that the bureau expects to finalize these orders within the next two weeks, emphasising that officials are making every effort to ensure these European campaigns also kick off by the beginning of August. 

This synchronized approach across two major continents aims to capture the critical booking windows for the upcoming winter travel season, maintaining Sri Lanka’s visibility among high-yield travellers.

Simultaneously, the bureau is advancing its marketing strategies for the Asian and Eurasian regions, targeting massive volume markets including India, Russia, and China. Bids for campaigns in these three nations have already been called, with bid openings scheduled for the first week of August. 

“We expect that by around mid-September, we will be able to select those agencies and place the orders for those three markets as well,” Niroshan explained.

He added that procurement processes are also actively underway to initiate interim campaigns in France, South Korea, and the Netherlands. Once this aggressive short-term marketing phase concludes, the tourism authority plans to seamlessly transition into a sustained global campaign designed to run for three to five years with Rs.4-5 billion budget, solidifying the island’s position as a premier global travel destination. (NF)