More Convention Centres for MICE Business Tourism in Sri Lanka

25th March 2010, www.lankabusinessonline.com

Sri Lanka is building more convention centres amid fears of a shortage of accommodation following a flood of tourists with the end of its war and temporary closure of a big conference hall.

Tourist industry officials said they are promoting MICE tourism, as travel abroad for Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions is known, catering to the high-end business traveller.

Hosting international conferences and exhibitions draws not only delegates who help fill up hotels but other tourists as well as word about the island's attractions spreads.

"Sri Lanka is not new to MICE tourism," said Vipula Wanigasekara, general manager of the Convention Bureau, which organises events. "We have a long history to way back in 1976."

That was when Sri Lanka hosted the summit of the Non-Aligned Movement, which brought in 83 leaders of Third World countries and around 600 foreign delegates.

Last year, the island hosted several international conferences and exhibitions on trade and information technology despite the surge in fighting between Tamil Tigers and government forces.

The Tigers were defeated in May, ending the 30-year ethnic conflict that had retarded economic growth and deterred tourists, resulting in an immediate flood of visitors.

Tourism officials said they are worried the country's infrastructure, neglected by war, has not developed on par with countries competing for MICE tourism like Singapore and Malaysia.

"We were hosting around 60,000 delegates a year in corporate tourism. That was the optimum level we could go with the available infrastructure," Wanigasekera said. "Now we have a situation where the prospects are very high in the coming years."

Imran Hassan, Secretary of Sri Lanka Association of Professional Conference and Exhibition Organizers, said although there is a fast growth in exhibitions, holding of conventions could face problems.

"As far as conferences are concerned, we are going to be hit. We do not have enough hotels in Colombo. And we cannot deal with the rates offered in the Far Eastern countries such as Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

"The private sector has to look at building more hotels in Colombo. Otherwise our industry cannot grow although it wants to."

Colombo has two major convention venues; the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) and the Sri Lanka Exhibition & Convention Centre (SLECC).

Both venues can house around 1500 delegates each.

But the BMICH has been closed till 2011 for renovation and expansion, leading to fears of a shortage of space to accommodate conferences.

The government meanwhile has begun building more convention venues across the country.

An International Convention Centre is being built in southern Hambantota, where a deep-water port is also coming up.

Officials said that construction work on the convention centre which is being funded by the Government of Korea is going ahead of schedule and will be open to host conventions by the end of this year.

A 128-acre plot of land has been identified for a convention centre in Arali, in northern Jaffna which was affected by the war.

A conference centre is also planned for Negombo, a tourist resort on the west coast.

Drawing business travellers to a country requires offering them modern convention and conference centres and competitive hotel accommodation rates, officials said.

"Although the industry is looking at major growth, we do not have enough rooms and our rate structure is a bit on the higher side in comparison with the Far East," Hassen said.

"When comparing the rates with the Far East it's going to be difficult to compete - we always have to bid with Malaysia and Singapore, or Thailand, and we can't match their rates."

Hassan said lower hotel rates would help Sri Lanka compete better when bidding to host conferences.

This year Sri Lanka expects to host a number of local and international and exhibitions and conferences.

These include the 32nd Asia-Pacific Dental Congress, Asia Microfinance Forum and the Scientific Meeting of the International Epidemiological Association. The Jaffna Trade and Book Fair is one of the local events.

Ramada Hotel & Convention Centre, New Delhi – The Latest Addition to Aitken Spence Hotels

21st December 2009, www.aitkenspence.com

Aitken Spence Hotels’ latest foray into the Indian market, takes the company to New Delhi, where a brand new property is due to open February / March 2010.

The 130-roomed, Ramada Hotel & Convention Centre will be laid out on a spectacular property spanning twelve acres, just ten minutes from the international airport on the Gurgaon airport expressway, in the famous Celebration Gardens, one of the foremost outdoor wedding locations in New Delhi.

All rooms will be well-equipped with the latest amenities, like high-speed wireless internet access, multimedia hubs and laptop safes, as well as additional features such as flat screen televisions with satellite channels and bathrooms with bathtubs. Room types will include six suites and villas, all elegantly designed in a combination of timber and Italian marble.

The hotel’s diversity of dining options will include a speciality restaurant, a coffee shop and a trendy bar. The entrance to the speciality restaurant will be via a bridge, suspended over an abundance of lush foliage, creating a luxurious ambience. For a more down-to-earth, yet splendid spread, the multi-cuisine coffee shop is open for all-day dining.

Additionally, the hotel will incorporate a fully-fledged business centre and a range of conference and banquet facilities. Situated next to the hotel, accessible by a hanging walkway, the ballroom will be able to accommodate up to two thousand guests. The hotel will also have at its disposal, two breathtaking garden locations ideal for functions with a guest-count up to another thousand.

Malin Hapugoda, Managing Director, Aitken Spence Hotels, was quoted as saying, “Aitken Spence has become renowned for our operational and strategic management strengths and it is for this reason that we were approached by the owners of the property. We are both excited and delighted to enter into this partnership to manage the Ramada Hotel & Convention Center, as we are aware that Northern India has immense potential and this will unquestionably gain us a stronger presence in the sub-continent.”

The hotel will join a network of twenty seven hotels located in Sri Lanka, India, Oman and the Maldives.

Located in some of the key tourist locations the Aitken Spence chain boasts of exotic properties such as Barefoot at Havelock located on the “The Best Beach in Asia” as rated by the Time Magazine, award winning eco-friendly properties, such as Heritance Kandalama, situated in close proximity to five UNESCO world heritage sites and Desert Nights Camp, Al Wasil, Oman, rated as one of the top ten desert retreats in the world. The chain’s Heritance Tea Factory has been voted by the Independent, UK as one of the ‘Top Five Factory Hotels’.