Sri Lanka shows prestige at JATA Tourism Expo 2019
Sri Lanka was able to create a positive impact on its Japanese counterparts about its uniqueness as a travel destination, by participating in JATA Tourism Expo 2019, held in Osaka, Japan, recently.
The Tourism Expo in Japan is one of the biggest trade and consumer-oriented travel fairs. JATA Congress attracted 1052 delegates while JATA Tourism Expo attracted over 210,000 visitors and 152 countries and regions during the fair in 2018.
The Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) has been participating in the JATA Travel Fair for the last 20 years to promote Sri Lanka tourism products among Japanese travellers.
Sri Lanka Tourism has always participated in the event with the main goal of promoting and introducing Sri Lanka’s cultural and historical attractions to the Japanese market and creating a platform to build business partnerships with their Japanese counterparts. Sri Lanka was represented by travel agents and hoteliers who have been promoting Sri Lanka in the Japanese market for so many years.
The Sri Lanka delegation for this year’s fair included SLTPB Japan Market Junior Manager Kalpa Gunasinghe, SLTPB Assistant Director Thanuja Muniweera and industry representative from Sri Lanka Ushan Ediriweera.
Twelve industry participants joined the Sri Lanka delegation at this mega event. The Sri Lanka pavilion was opened under the patronage of Osaka Honorary Consular Dr. Kyoito, Minister Commercial Samantha Wijesekara, representing the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Tokyo, Japan and Sri Lanka Business Council Chairperson Saman Priyankara.
The items which drew the attention of the visitors were the tea counter, roulette board, selfie corner and VR experience, where Japanese visitors were able to get an exclusive opportunity of getting a life-like experience of whale watching and the scenic beauty of Sri Lanka.
The Japanese visitors were impressed to explore the amazing holiday and travel opportunities that Sri Lanka had to offer and its scenic beauty, the cultural and natural wonders. The traditional dance performances held at the Sri Lanka pavilion brought much fascination to the Japanese visitors and to see their cultural glamour.
The tea counter provided them with the best of Ceylon Tea, freshly brewed and had a tantalising aroma. This year, the exhibition saw a large crowd of over 150,000 visitors in all four days, even more than the fair which was held in Tokyo last year. This was the first time in which the event was held in Osaka, since traditionally it has been held in Tokyo since its inception.
Business-to-business (B2B) meetings were also held at the Sri Lanka Pavilion, where the members of the Sri Lankan delegation were able to discuss and exchange trade ideas with their Japanese counterparts.
This year, the SLTPB reserved an area of one twenty-six square meters for the Sri Lanka pavilion.