Three-year plan to develop Trinco harbour

The Trincomalee harbour will be developed under a three-year plan, Ports and Shipping Minister Mahnida Samrasinghe, who made a visit to the harbour said recently. He said 10, 000 hectares of land vested with the harbour have been identified. This land will soon be gazetted and will be used to develop the port’s capacity, the minister noted. The port has four jetties currently in operation.

Tourism Leaders’ Summit and International Research Symposium to be held in October

The third consecutive Tourism Leaders’ Summit and International Research Symposium is to be held on 3rd and 4th October at the BMICH in Colombo.

Stasshani Jayawardena recognised for hospitality sector leadership

Stasshani Jayawardena, Director of Aitken Spence PLC and Chairperson of Aitken Spence Hotel Managements (Pvt) Limited was recently awarded the Hotel & Hospitality sector Gold award at the Top 50 Professional & Career Women Awards organised by the Women in Management (WIM) in partnership with IFS, a member of the World Bank Group.

Inaugurating Sri Lanka Pavilion

The Minister of Tourism Development John Ameratunga inaugurating  The  Sri  Lanka  Pavilion  at the India International Travel Mart in Bangalore on 21st July. IITM is India’s Premier Travel and Tourism Exhibition

First online platform to build, customize and price overseas holiday packages launched

Sri Lanka recently witnessed the launch of Makeyourtrip.com, the first-ever online platform that helps Sri Lankans build, customise, edit and price their travel itineraries, based on their likes and interests. Makeyourtrip.com is powered by Findmyfare (Pvt) Ltd, Sri Lanka’s largest online travel agency.

Colombo among top five SA exit cities in terms of visitor arrivals for S’pore

Colombo is among the top five exit cities in South Asia in 2016 in terms of visitor arrivals for Singapore that indicates a boom in outbound tourism. 

‘Hotel Show Lanka’ concludes with business gathering and awards ceremony

Hotel Show Lanka 2017, the leading specialized trade show for the hotel, restaurant and food service sectors concluded its twelfth edition with a spectacular awards ceremony, highlighting significant advancement in the industry. 

SriLankan Global Contact Centre improves services for Chinese travelers

SriLankan Airlines enhanced its services for customers in China with the launch of a local direct-dial number for the airline’s customers throughout China recently, which will connect them directly with Mandarin-speaking customer service staff at its Global Contact Centre.

Coimbatore becomes SriLankan’s 14th destination in India

SriLankan Airlines announced the launch of new services from July 16th to Coimbatore, the second largest city in India’s southern state of Tamil Nadu. 

Oman Air wins ‘Best Airline Staff Service in the Middle East’ award

Oman Air has been named as the winner of the ’Best Airline Staff Service in the Middle East’ award at the Skytrax World Airline Awards 2017 - voted for by air travellers based on their own experiences.  The award was presented at a ceremony held at the recent Paris Air Show. Itrecognises the commitment of Oman Air’s staff to providing theirguests with quality, comfort and a seamless passenger experience. 

Emirates and flydubai join forces, announce extensive partnership agreement

Emirates and flydubai have unveiled an extensive partnership which will see the two Dubai-based airlines join forces to offer customers unmatched travel options. Both airlines will continue to be managed independently, but will leverage each other’s network to scale up their operations and accelerate growth.  

Emirates offers special fares on travel from Colombo to Singapore, Melbourne

Emirates has made travel from Colombo to Singapore and Melbourne significantly more affordable with Companion Fares announced this week.

Etihad increases frequency to Egypt and Nigeria

Etihad Airways is adding year-round flights between its Abu Dhabi hub and both Cairo and Lagos later this year to cater to growing demand to and from the United Arab Emirates.

Sigiriya Handicrafts Village to become night-time performing arts centre

Sigiriya Shilpa Handicrafts Village is to get a much-needed boost through a proposed public-private partnership that will transform the village into a lively performing arts centre.

Blue Ocean Group ventures into travel industry

Sri Lanka’s largest condominium developer – Blue Ocean Group of Companies recently ventured into a new vertical, the burgeoning travel and leisure industry by opening its  travel  arm –  ‘Blue Ocean Travels’, last week. 

SriLankan launches services to Hyderabad

SriLankan Airlines launched new services from yesterday to India’s fourth largest city Hyderabad, the capital of the state of Telangana.  

Ulagalla sweeps Golden Panther Award for ‘Best Boutique Hotel’

Ulagalla, one of Uga Escapes’ renowned boutique properties, took away a Golden Panther Award for ‘Best Boutique Hotel’ 2017 at an awards ceremony held in Germany. 

Dinuda Resort brings impressive tourist services

Dinuda Resort facing Kalpitiya lagoon, a sumptuous gift of mother nature is a tourist hot spot that has woven its fascination in the hearts of local and foreign tourists. 

Tourism Development Ministry identifies Mannar District for major tourism infrastructure

The Ministry of Tourism Development has identified Mannar District for major tourism infrastructure development projects. Already over Rs.40 million has been spent on making the beach areas tourist friendly and many other projects are being planned in order to make the district the main hub for tourism in the region. 

Qatar Airways celebrates 10 years of unparalleled service to US

Qatar Airways has celebrated 10 years of unparalleled service to the United States by illuminating the Empire State Building in its signature burgundy and white colours. 

Qatar Airways celebrates Skytrax ‘World’s Best Airline’ win with special discounts across network

Qatar Airways is celebrating winning the Skytrax ‘World’s Best Airline’ award by offering passengers up to 40 percent off on flights to popular holiday destinations across its growing global network, as part of its ‘Fly with the World’s Best Airline’ global sales campaign launched this week.  

Residential training for mahouts on elephant care

Sri Lanka Tourism, in collaboration with the Central Provincial Council geared up to sponsor a new project in providing residential training on elephant care for the elephant mahouts in the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage. 

Avenra celebrates 10 years of sharing happiness with others

Avenra chain of hotels is gearing up to celebrate its 10th year anniversary. The hotel chain has been offering several innovative venue options for the past 10 years with Avenra Garden in Negombo and Avenra Beach Hikkaduwa.

SriLankan connects Visakhapatnam to the world

SriLankan Airlines, the largest foreign airline operating to India, is proud to commence operations to Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh from today. 

Great fares to celebrate Singapore Airline’s 70th anniversary

Singapore Airlines together with SilkAir, the regional wing of Singapore Airlines (SIA), are offering attractive Business Class and Economy Class fares to selected destinations, giving more reasons for customers to travel to their preferred destinations. 

Qatar Airways exempted from United States ban on electronic devices

Qatar Airways, the World’s Best Airline as voted by Skytrax 2017, is delighted to confirm it has been approved by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to permit passengers to carry personal electronic items on board U.S.-bound flights, departing from its hub Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar. 

Emirates expands free in-flight Wi-Fi offering

Effective immediately, all Emirates Skywards Platinum and Gold members can enjoy free unlimited Wi-Fi during their Emirates flight, regardless of their class  of travel. 

CICT voted Best Container Terminal in Asia under 4 mn TEUs

The CMPort managed Colombo International Container Terminals (CICT), the only deep water terminal in the Port of Colombo, has been voted the Best Container Terminal (under 4 million TEUs) in Asia at the prestigious Asian Freight, Logistics and Supply Chain (AFLAS) Awards hosted and organised by Asia Cargo News.

SriLankan Airlines welcomes future leaders

Creating opportunities for dynamic young individuals to achieve their potential, SriLankan Airlines recruited 20 new management trainees, following a one-year comprehensive   training programme. 

Electronics ban on Emirates flights lifted with immediate effect

Effective immediately, the electronics ban has been lifted for Emirates’ flights from Dubai International Airport to the U.S.A, an Emirates spokesperson said.