Outbound

Sri Lanka to aggressively tap Indian MICE market

Will hold road shows in Mumbai

Gayatri Vijaykumar - Bengaluru

Sri Lanka is looking at aggressively marketing itself as a MICE destination to the Indian market. Explains Nimalka Morahela, consultant for Sri Lanka Convention Bureau (SLCB), "India is our closest neighbour and the proximity factor makes it a good market to target. Sri Lanka as a destination is good value for money with reasonably priced hotels in all categories and good shopping facilities. We also cater to the Indian palette."

The convention bureau has already held road shows in Bengaluru and Hyderabad last year. According to Morahela, plans are on to conduct similar road shows in Mumbai soon. SLCB is also looking at holding road shows in other countries. However, the locations have not been finalised yet. "We have also conducted events with our cricketing heroes in Delhi and Mumbai. We had launched the Ramayana trails that have proved to be a success in the Indian market. We also plan to represent Sri Lanka in other events to be held in India," she explains.

According to her, Sri Lanka also offers visitors beaches, mountains and historical sites all within three to four hours from Colombo, making it an ideal destination for MICE. Morahela adds that the recent conflicts in Sri Lanka had led to a 15 per cent dip in arrivals. "SLCB is working closely with our national carrier SriLankan Airlines, hotels and travel agents from Sri Lanka in order to promote the destination. Our biggest advantage is that Sri Lankan Airlines offers 100 flights into India every week and hence can leverage on this to promote the country," she said.