Don't expect overnight results from Global Campaign, says Sri Lanka Tourism Chief

The Chairman of the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA), Buddika Hewawasam, has called for patience and realistic expectations regarding a future global promotion campaign, cautioning that a sustainable increase in arrivals will not happen overnight and could take a couple of years to bear fruit.

- By NISHEL FERNANDO

Speaking at the International Tourism Leaders Summit in Colombo last week, Hewawasam directly addressed what he termed a "public misconception" that launching a major international campaign would immediately trigger a massive surge in tourist numbers.

"There was a kind of public misconception, I must say. If you have been doing a kind of national campaign, the next day the tourism growth will be boosted for about more than 50 percent. That will not happen," he stated emphatically.