Sri Lanka enters sports tourism with golf and surfing

19 August 2015 04:22 am Views - 1462

The global sports tourism business, which is defined either people being involved, observing or participating in a particular sport for leisure, is valued at US $ 600 billion. Sri Lanka Tourism will be focussing initially on this segment in the area of golf and there after surfing in partnership with SriLankan Airlines and the respective global bodies. This was announced by Sri Lanka Tourism Promotions Bureau Chairman Dr. Rohantha Athukorala at the launch of the Beach Boutique Hotel located in the outskirts of Pamunugama. The hotel is a uniquely positioned boutique hotel where the water gushes underneath the property believed to be a cave carved out by the sea.

Athukorala went on to comment that Sri Lanka Tourism is in the concluding stages with Sri Lanka Cricket Board on how cricketing culture can foster tourism in the key markets of India, the UK and Australia, which are in the top 10 tourism source markets for the country.

Beach Boutique Hotel Chairman Deepthi Jayamaha mentioned.  “We started this venture as a holiday home for the family and then due to the demand, up scaled it to a boutique hotel. The insight shared by the SLTPB Chairman that 49 percent of the travellers into Sri Lanka are consumed by the informal sector, 77 percent of them using digital media in the decision-making process, with TripAdvisor being a strong influencer, tell us what do to fill our rooms,” he said.