Sri Lanka has a great future and all the ingredients required to make the country a leading holiday destination in the world, said Juergen Sziegoleit, General Manager , Le Meridien Dom Hotel, Cologne.
Sziegoliet now on a 10 day holiday in SriLanka with his family said "I have fallen in love with Sri Lanka and this is my 14th visit to the country."
In an interview with "The Traveller" in Cologne, he said, though it will take a little longer to heal the wounds of war but the country was on the right path where tourism was concerned.
"Your country had a great civilization dating back to over 2500 years when we were running around in banana skirts," he said.
What is needed is an accelerated development programme to improve the facilities and infrastructure, he stressed.
Sziegoleit a keen golfer, was the winner of the golf touranament oraganised by the Sri Lanka’s Consulate in Frankfurt with Sri Lankan Airlines and Sri Lanka Tourism held in November here where a large number of German golfers participated.
"Sri Lanka has every opportunity to promote the country as a top golfing destination with a number of golf courses in different climes," he said.
Royal Colombo Golf Club is the second oldest gold club in the world after St Andrews in Scotland and the course in good nick and good condition, he said.
This is a very good opportunity to invite international golfers to play here with peace dawning on Sri Lanka, he pointed out.
But he warned, the country would have to improve the infrastructure rapidly if it is to cater to more tourists and added that travelling in Sri Lanka is a nightmare. Building of good roadways is sine qua non if the country is to progress, he explained.
Sziegoliet, who was a part of the 50 member German Business Entrepreneurs delegation that visited here in early November, said there are ample investment opportunities in the North and East of Sri Lanka and many top investors, including Germans are awaiting for the opportune moment to come here.
source - www.island.lk
No comments:
Post a Comment