Sri Lanka eyes more Chinese arrivals

Sri Lanka is trying to woo more Chinese tourists to the island nation. As part of its marketing efforts, the Minister of Tourism Development John Amaratunga has held talks with Chinese tourism and airline officials to encourage more visitors to Sri Lanka from China.

The talks were held during a visit to promote the island at the Shanghai World Travel Fair held at Shanghai Exhibition Centre in China. The team has conducted a series of promotional events and meetings across major cities in China, including Shanghai, Nanjing and Chengdu, during the past week.

The Sri Lankan tourism minister has held talks with Xu Weiwan, the chairperson of Shanghai Tourism Administration, with a view to increase outbound traffic to Sri Lanka and improve connectivity from Shanghai to Colombo. Amaratunga also visited C-Trip and Tuniu and held talks with the top managements of the respective companies to enhance the volume of individual travellers to Sri Lanka.

Amaratunga also visited Sichuan Airlines headquarters and for talks with top management. The airlines is planning to start direct flight operations between Chongqing and Colombo.