SriLankan Holidays is spreading its wings across India and the Far East, tying up with franchise partners to woo more travellers with tempting packages and holiday deals.

The leisure arm of national carrier SriLankan Airlines, SriLankan Holidays celebrated a successful first year this April, as travellers snapped up special offers and filled up airline seats to Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, China and India. 

“SriLankan Holidays is now ready to expand”, says Amith Sumanapala, General Manager, SriLankan Holidays, “and is actively mobilising a global network of franchise operators.”

There are already 17 franchises in operation across India and the Middle East, with SriLankan Holidays looking to expand the network to cover all online points in the Middle and Far East this year.

"We have found that offers on SriLankan Holidays have been very popular among tourists, with many special deals being completely taken up within the first few weeks of it being offered. We are also seeing more people travelling," Sumanapala said.

Franchise holders or destination management companies will sell holidays exclusively under the 'SriLankan Holidays' brand label and be eligible to offer special rates on airfares and holidays to select markets on the SriLankan Airlines network.

The franchise partners will arrange and co-ordinate all ground services and also have the flexibility to tie up with any ground operator in Sri Lanka or SriLankan Holiday's approved tour operator in other online markets.

SriLankan Holidays has dished up a selection of value for money offers with special package rates on airfares, hotel stays, airport transfers and  city tours.

It's 'Mega 999 deals  recently offered travellers two extra nights for just one additional rupee to regional hotspots like Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Dubai, Beijing, Hong Kong and India.

"After our initial promotional run, which was a phenomenal success, we are now looking forward to giving holidaymakers an entirely new ‘world of memories’ to cherish. We are always looking out for new and innovative holiday ideas and to improve on the special promotions we offer," Sumanapala said.

SriLankan Holidays has built up partnerships with hotels and tour operators across SriLankan Airline's 51   destinations in 28 countries, giving travellers a wider selection of holiday options.

Holiday makers to Sri Lanka can also fly aboard the SriLankan Air Taxi, and enjoy a bird’s eye view of the island and reach 14 destinations across the country, including Bentota, Koggala and Dickwella in the south coast in less than 50 minutes.

May 29th, 2007