• Survey on Departing Foreign Tourists from Sri Lanka September'08-February'09
• Model Beach in Induruwa
• Passikudah Resort
• Training Programme for Staff of Sri Lanka Immigration and Emigration Department
• Tourist Visitor Survey in Kandy during Esala Perahera Session

Survey on Departing Foreign Tourists from Sri Lanka September'08 - February'09

The Research Division of the SLTDA conducted a survey of departing foreign tourists during the period September 2008 to February 2009. The survey was carried out at the Bandaranaike International Airport.

The survey was carried out primarily to obtain information of tourists departing after holidaying in Sri Lanka. The following 4 areas were assessed:

1. Visitor profile
2. Travel behaviour
3. Expenditure patterns
4. Opinions and impressions of tourists

During the period, a total of 3,013 tourists and 1,433 transit passengers were interviewed directly by foreign language competent interviewers.

The quota sampling method was used to gather the information and the population was broadly stratified under 11 market groups. The market groups were determined according to the country of residence, namely the UK, India, Middle East, Germany, France, China, Japan, Russia, Benelux, Italy, and Scandinavia. Age and sex were used for further demographic representation of data.

Results can be viewed at http://www.sltda.lk/statistics

Chairman , SLTDA Mr.B.Goonetilleke launched a programme to declare Induruwa Beach stretch from Taj Exotica Hotel to Saman Villas to transform it into a Model Beach at a meeting held at Taj Exotica Hotel, Bentota on 09th July 2009 with the participation of Mr. Cornel Perera (Chairman, SLITHM), Mr. Daya Rathnayake (Chairman, Saman Villa), and Mr. Upali De Silva (Director, Standards & Quality Assurance) together with the stakeholders.

It has been decided to declare the area as a model beach by a gazette notification and envisage SLTDA to play a catalytic role to boost the image of the destination and to provide enhanced quality of experience to tourists visiting the resort area.

The project will be officially launched shortly.

Prior to 1983, the Passikudah Resort was a popular tourist destination amongst both foreign and local travelers. Bordered by the Passikudah Bay and spanning 150 acres, the Resort was planned to accommodate 500 rooms, in several stages. By 1983, 3 hotels with a total of 171 rooms were in operation. However, the operation came to a grinding halt following the 1983 riots.

Today, the SLTDA is planning to revive this Resort as travel restrictions to the East have been lifted. The 100 acre extent of the Resort area has been reserved for the construction of several hotels. Investors have been selected and their proposals to construct approximately 500-700 rooms are currently being evaluated. The exact number of rooms is likely to depend on the physical carrying capacity of the beach. A land area of 50 acres has been reserved out for public areas, recreational facilities and common amenities.

The Public Area will comprise the following:

• SLTDA Office
• Bank Branch
• Tea Centre, with retail facilities
• Post Office with an exhibition of old stamps
• Internet Café
• Art Gallery
• Performing Art Centre
• Changing rooms for day visitors
• Restaurant
• Tourist Police Station
• Shopping Centre

The Recreational facilities will include land and water based sports, some of which are as follows:

The development of the Resort will be eco-friendly and would conserve all natural resources.

General guidelines that would be followed in planning the Resort are as follows:

• Density of hotel room development will be restricted to approximately 10 rooms per acre.
• Building height will be limited to a maximum of ground and 2 stories.
• A landscaped buffer zone should be kept around the buildings as a protective barrier against noise and this will also help to maintain the privacy of the hotel.
• All buildings will be designed with local architectural features, traditional patterns and designs.

The Concept Plan is currently being prepared by the Sri Lanka Institute of Architects, which is expected to be completed by early September.

"Customer Service Excellence" a six day training programme was organized by the SLTDA. The programme was held at the Beach Hotel Negombo from the 23rd of June to the 30th of June 2009. The training was attended by 210 officers from the Sri Lanka Immigration and Emigration Department and focused on developing customer relationships, managing customers and motivating staff.

Mr. Dhammika Kalapuge, Director Sipcom-1 (Pvt) Ltd conducted the programme and the SLTDA’s Research and International Relations Division coordinated the programme.

A tourist visitor survey was conducted by the Research Division of the SLTDA in Kandy during the 1st week of August 2009.

The survey was conducted to gather information from a sample size of approximately 200 foreign tourists and 100 domestic tourists. The information gathered by a team of interviewers, who are students of the Kandy hotel school. The main objective of the survey was to obtain information pertaining to visitor profile, travel behaviour patterns, and views about the Perahaera, facilities and attractions in Kandy. By conducting this survey, the SLTDA hopes it could make recommendations for future development to this historical city.

Apart from this, a separate survey will be conducted on all tourism stakeholders in Kandy. The survey will collate their comments and views for future developments. This will include stakeholders such as hoteliers, guest / rest house owners, travel agents, tour operators and tourist facility providers.