Workshop on Sri Lanka with “DSBW Tours”
27th February 2013
A workshop on Sri Lanka was held 27 February 2013 at the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Moscow. Workshop was organized by the Embassy in collaboration with “DSBW Tours”, a large and well-known tour operator with more than 20 years of experience in the tourism industry. The event was attended by more than 50 tour agents interested in comprehensive and reliable information about Sri Lanka as well as being educated to sell and promote this attractive and promising destination.
His Excellency Mr. Udayanga Weeratunga, Ambassador of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka to the Russian Federation opened the workshop with a lecture in Russian language. For two hours the Ambassador spoke about the history and culture of the country, visa regime, main tour routes and sights of the island. His Excellency informed the participants about the achievements and development of tourism sector in Sri Lanka; in December 2012 Sri Lanka welcomed 1 millionth tourist. For the whole year the country received 1 005 605 tourists, including 28 402 from Russia, which is 32.8% increase compared to 2011. The statistics show that Sri Lanka successfully pursue the target set by His Excellency the President Mahinda Rajapaksa, to attract 2.5 million tourists by 2016.
The seminar was also attended by the representatives of SriLankan Airlines and Emirates. The Area Manager of SriLankan Airlines in Moscow, Mr. Kavishan Dissanayake spoke about the fleet expansion and the benefits of direct flights to Colombo, connection capabilities and on-board services. He also introduced one of the Airline’s new products – Air Taxi, which allows tourists to minimize time for internal transfers across the island. Mrs. Oksana Kamachkina, Sales Executive of Emirates Airlines, reported about the Airbus A-380 on-board services for the passengers of economy, business and first classes. She also presented a new service “Dubai Stopover”, which includes accommodation in one of 60 hotels in Dubai, airport transfer and meeting, as well as visa support.
Concluding the workshop Mrs. Elena Silina, Head of the Exotic Department of DSBW Tours, informed the travel agents of the main tour programs, the most popular beaches and hotels in Sri Lanka. All the participants were invited for a delicious Sri Lankan lunch, arranged by the Embassy.
