“The world's greenest hotels, from Switzerland to Sri Lanka” says the head line in Canadian newspaper Victoria Times Colonist on Heritance Kandalama’s achievement of being rated among the world's best environmentally friendly hotels, as selected by Travel+Leisure magazine, which partnered with Conservation International to assess properties.

“When viewed from afar, Heritance Kandalama resembles an ancient temple grown wild with disuse. In fact, the vegetation and location have nothing to do with neglect (note the hand woven tapestries and stunning floor-to-ceiling windows in each room) and everything to do with ensuring that rainwater flowing from the hills collects in the reservoir below." For the full story
Visit http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/story.html

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They came, they spoke and they mesmerized.  A long line of celebrity writers from  Gore Vidal to Vikram Seth; from Indran Amirthanyagam  to Randy Boyagoda; from Carl Muller to Yasmine Gooneratne; the  travel writers Simon Winchester, Tim Severin, Brian Keenan and William Dalrymple;  Alexander McCall Smith they all made their impact on the audience.

 “An unforgettable five days of intellectual activity, in the most beautiful setting, with bright sunshine through out and the warm smiles of the people, I am so glad to have come. I came to hear Vikram Seth but I am overjoyed to be here. I plan to come again and visit Sigiriya and other places of interest too” Shobana Pratap, Bangalore India.

While literary luminaries were in the limelight, advocates of conservation and tourism too shone brightly, as they spoke passionately of their concern for the environment, at the Maritime Museum in Galle. Ranil Senanayake, Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne, Rory Spowers and Kim Kindersley spoke of the myths and realities of Climate Change with Renton de Alwis; Chairman Sri Lanka Tourism, sponsors of the event as moderator, throwing light on Sri Lanka Tourism’s perspective, at the session titled Climate Change and Tourism: The Dilemma.   

On 27th, 28th and 29th January the Hotel Taj Samudra will be in the spot light as the creations of 15 designers from India , Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Italy are unveiled.

This promotion of local talent alongside the regional and international is a much awaited event with foreign fashion media covering the event for the global audience. Sri Lanka has earned its place as a leading manufacturer of apparel and ‘Colombo Fashion Week’ will throw new light on Sri Lanka’s image in the field of clothing. For details on programme visit www.colombofashionweek.com

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Lanka, home to beautiful golf courses has produced some of the regions best players; continue to be an attractive destination, for both amateurs and professionals alike. The Victoria Golf and Country Club, a more recent addition to the centuries old and legendary Royal Colombo Golf Club and the Golf Club Nuwara Eliya,  is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year with special tournaments. 

The Donald Steel scheduled for the 9th and 10th of February and the second round of the Victoria 10th Anniversary Trophy on the 16th with the Medal Round on Saturday the 23rd are some of the highlights of the celebrations. For more details and other events of interests visit website www.golfsrilanka.com.

Naturalist Gehan De Silva Wijeyeratne’s latest contribution to eco tourism is a handy booklet titled Endemic Birds of Sri Lanka which contains sharp and colourful pictures of a variety of birds unique to Sri Lanka.  The book will be a guide to students and birdwatchers alike of the 33 bird species commonly found in Sri Lanka. Free downloads of the book is available on www.jetwingeco.com

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Sri Lanka Calling is delighted by the appointment of Arjuna Ranatunga and Aravinda de Silva as Tourisms Ambassadors. Arjuna, current head of Sri Lanka Cricket and captain of world cup winning team of 1996 and award winning batsman Aravinda de Silva, will open another distinguished innings for Sri Lanka promoting destination Sri Lanka.  

In the years gone by it was Ceylon Tea that evoked nostalgia for the country, in the recent past Sri Lanka has become more renowned for excellence in cricket and the British fans(Barmy Army) coming in thousands to witness the England Sri Lanka cricket series in December has boosted arrivals and the popularity of the destination. The appointment of the cricketing ambassadors will give a further boost to a destination which is poised to delight tourists with warm hospitality

Catherine STEINMETZ, of the French travel agency - Mesnil Voyages (Paris area) – an agency of the Thomas Cook network, is the delighted winner of a holiday for two to Sri Lanka and a stay at one of the most beautiful hotels in the island.

Ecstatic at winning Catherine is delighted at the thought of visiting the Sri Lanka a like no other. “I have heard a lot about Sri Lanka from a couple of friends who went there for their honeymoon and from colleagues who have had the chance to discover the country through Educational Tours. They have come back totally amazed and wish only one thing… Going back again!”

She adds “I am definitely impatient to go to Sri Lanka. On a professional perspective, this trip will definitely be an asset for me: I will be able to speak in a better way to my clientele about the country. It is a great advantage to know by experience the destination we are speaking about. That definitely makes the difference!”.

Delighted by the destination, Catherine wishes to extend her stay with one additional week for her holidays, so that she can include the discovery of the cultural triangle, the tea plantation region and the heavenly south coast beaches scheduling the departure for October 2008.