The Sacred Heart Cathedral, a famous historic site in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
A DELEGATION from the tourism authority of Guangdong Province in China visited Sri Lanka last month to promote tourism in that region, a rare move that surprised Sri Lanka’s top state tourism chief Paddy Withana.
“I find this an interesting moment where I am promoting visitors to go to China rather than inviting them here,” he said, adding however that “this is a unique opportunity because (both tourism authorities) are looking after each other’s interests.”
Withana stated that Guangdong is one of the best destinations in China with many attractions such as museums, parks and street markets.
The Guangdong delegation was led by Huang Guangzhi, vice director of the Tourism Administration of Guangdong Province Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Tourism Affairs Section, who showed a promotional video and invited Sri Lankans to visit Guangdong as well as Hong Kong and Macau under a single visa facility.
An official at Aitken Spence Travels, Sri Lanka’s biggest outbound travel agency, said they were hoping to promote resort destinations in the Guangdong province in a big way in the future.
Many Sri Lankans currently visit Guangdong for the annual China (Guangdong) International Tourism Industry Expo (CITE) event held every September, widely considered to be nearly mandatory for leisure companies.
