George Steuart Travels Director/CEO Channe Wijemanne receiving the Gold award from Singapore Airlines Senior Regional Vice President Asia and West Africa Joey Seow in the presence of Singapore Airlines General Manager Richard Kwee and Aitken Spence Aviation Chairman J.M.S. Britto


George Steuart Travels was recognized with a Gold award for the ‘Best Passenger Sales’ at the Annual Passenger Sales Award Ceremony that was held in Colombo recently.

The 35-year-old travel arm of the diversified conglomerate, George Steuart and Company, was ranked as the number one travel agent for the year 2014/15 for the third consecutive year by one of the most prestigious airlines in the world. 

While the objective of the event was to reward and recognize agencies in the travel trade, it was also held to commemorate 30 years of continuous services between Singapore and Colombo. 

Classic Travels was awarded with Silver and Gabo Travels bagged the Bronze award while Merit awards were handed out to Hemas Travels, Mackinnons American Express Travels (Pvt.) Ltd, Hayleys Travels and Tours Ltd, BOC Travels Ltd, World Link Travels Ltd, Metro Travels and Tours Ltd and Traveller Global Ltd.

Accepting the award on behalf of the company, George Steuart Travels Director/CEO Channe Wijemanne said, “We are extremely proud to have won this award for the third consecutive year and I accept it with great humility and satisfaction. Having recognized the tough competition we had during the past year, I am extremely proud of my team for their tremendous effort towards making sure that we strive to maintain a culture of excellence across our operations and reinforce our position as one of the most respected names in Sri Lanka’s travel and tourism industry.

I’m also happy and proud to note that this achievement was made without getting into any unethical practices which unfortunately seems to be on the rise in our beloved industry. While most of us are not guilty of such practices, I humbly state to those who do so, that it is possible to come up on top even while working ethically.”

Wijemanne also added, “I would also like to convey my sincere appreciation to Trevor Rajaratnam, Bernard Wijetunge, George Steuart Travels Ltd Founder Director Somasundaram Skandakumar and present George Steuart Chairman Dilith Jayaweera for moulding and guiding me into the travel trade.”