Lanka – Thai relations on travel high
The Sri Lankan government will very soon issue free visas for Thai nationals with the possibility of extending it to other countries as well.
Tourism Development Minister John Amaratunga speaking at a media briefing held on Thursday to announce the MOU signed between the Thai government and Sri Lanka, noted that they “will implement a proposal soon to give free visa for Thais and extend it to other countries as well.”
The minister made this observation during the visit of a Thai delegation of about 80 comprising media, travel agents and Buddhist monks.
He also said that the embarkation tax would be reduced from US$60 to $50 or $40 for a period of six months in a bid to entice more travellers to the country.
In addition, the BIA would be implementing a reduction in ground handling by 30-40 per cent for a period of six months.
The delegation would help to secure more Thais to travel to Sri Lanka, he said adding that in the past there had been an imbalance and which is what Sri Lanka would want to encourage and improve with more travellers from the country.
In 2018 there had been 9,300 Thai nationals visiting Sri Lanka and about 50,000 Sri Lankans touring Thailand in the same year. With a population of 68 million there are about 9 million Thais that travel overseas every year and at the same time they attract about 38 million visitors to the country throughout the year with $9 trillion in earnings.
Thai Ambassador Mrs. Chulamanee Chartsuwan commenting on the difficulties in obtaining a Thai visa from Sri Lanka explained that they had facilities now to apply for a visa online.
With the proper documents “I don’t think it is difficult if you plan ahead,” she said.
Deputy Governor of the Tourism Association of Thailand Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya said that the relations between the two countries in terms of Buddhism will bode us well adding that in “happy and challenging times we are together”.
He said they would help try to send more Thai tourists to Sri Lanka and said that next it would be for Sri Lanka Tourism to go out and say ‘you’ are open for business.
Mr. Ayudhya also said that when carrying out a marketing campaign it was essential to send the word out through a digital platform but he also explained that in today’s context more people were likely to find advertisements in their local trusted newspapers and other mainstream media as the authority for proof of validity for promotions. As a result a mix of different media forms was vital in carrying out promotions.
Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) Chairman Kishu Gomes said that safety was challenged on April 21 but today it was restored. “Sri Lanka is as safe as any destination in the world. Numbers went down but went from 1000 to 2000,” he said.
He noted that the Thai delegation of Buddhist monks two weeks after the incident was a boost to tourism in Sri Lanka.
Mr. Gomes said they would more focused on digital marketing and including bloggers in the campaign adding that they were yet to appoint a PR company as the JWT will be carrying out the global marketing campaign.
Thailand Tourism which has faced similar experiences and recovered quickly to attract even greater numbers has agreed to share expertise with regard to crisis management and recovery strategies.