In-bound tourism...
“In-bound tourism will definitely be a key area over this year, especially from countries like China, Korea and Japan” said Arumugam.
He further stated that Singapore Airlines is already engaging with officials from the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau in order to initiate strategies to develop the country’s tourism further, ideally by diverting some of the traffic that currently heads towards tourist hotspot Male.
“We have been in Sri Lanka for something like 40 years now. We have seen the market and we have committed to it and will remain committed in future, and hopefully if the Sri Lankan market grows, then we hope to grow with it” added Arumugam.
The airline industry is likely to face a difficult year in 2012; if economic turmoil in Europe is to continue unabated, according to the newly appointed Singapore Airlines General Manager, Sri Lanka, Aldrin Arumugam.
“As a hub airline we rely on several different markets, but with the situation in Europe at the moment being very tough, we expect that it will be a challenging year but with some good pockets of growth as well,” said Arumugam.
Nevertheless Arumugam, who was previously posted in Greece, was still optimistic about prospects for the airline in Sri Lanka.
“In-bound tourism will definitely be a key area over this year, especially from countries like China, Korea and Japan” said Arumugam.
He further stated that Singapore Airlines is already engaging with officials from the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau in order to initiate strategies to develop the country’s tourism further, ideally by diverting some of the traffic that currently heads towards tourist hotspot Male.
“We have been in Sri Lanka for something like 40 years now. We have seen the market and we have committed to it and will remain committed in future, and hopefully if the Sri Lankan market grows, then we hope to grow with it” added Arumugam.