Encapsulating the essence of Sri Lanka, its authenticity, diversity and all of its richness is an expression that sums up the travels and tales of a Sri Lankan experience.

“So Sri Lanka” goes beyond being a place descriptor and embodies the vibrant qualities that inspire us about our travels and tales from the island nation.

At the launch of the new strategy and slogan the Minister said that the So Sri Lanka brand is not only exhilarating – it’s the beginning of a new era.

“We envisage that tourism will flourish to be the most significant sector contributing to our economy - that’s the goal we aspire to reach in the next few years,” he said.

“ It is also important mentioning that this is the first time in history that Sri Lanka tourism has worked towards building a strategic digital-first perspective, ‘So Sri Lanka’ is an amplifier brand that supports and engages typical Millennial travel exploration, this is important in view of the statistic that in 2020, 50% of travel revenue will be spent by millennials, and Asia is a millennial favorite – so we are committed to making Sri Lanka future-savvy and a vibrantly relevant destination going forward.”

The Minister unveiled the new slogan along with Chief Guest of Honour Lord Nasby.

The Strategy

In the last 10 years, Sri Lanka has seen a steady growth in arrivals and investments. Based on qualitative research findings on inbound tourists for the last three years, the most endearing feature of Sri Lanka as a destination brand is its authenticity. This authenticity is an attribute that is alive in the country's heritage, cuisine, landscape, architecture, culture and mostly in its people. Recently, Lonely Planet ranked Sri Lanka as top destination to travel in 2019 based on its diverse and authentic offerings.

So Sri Lanka

The resulting brand “So Sri Lanka” is laser focused on elevating Sri Lanka’s destination brand to include all its diverse offerings and unique attributes.

“So Sri Lanka” goes beyond being a place descriptor and embodies the vibrant qualities that inspire us about Sri Lanka. It is an expression that is easy to use by locals and travelers of diverse origins, be it a traveler from China or a French millennial. Ms Alyna Hajji Omar, CEO, J Walter Thompson explained, “The objective of the brand “So Sri Lanka” is to inspire us to proudly own our finer qualities while at the same time be open enough to continuously work on improvements. We have moved away from investing in a passive identity and we are seeking a dialogue with our socially active millennial travelers.

The new logo

The logo is easily recognizable with its artisanal circular representation. It is a logo that comes alive in marketing material effortlessly. In the coming months, a new marketing campaign will be launched based on the new identity, which will give us a taste of the depth, and versatility of the new brand platform. The creators behind the concept and strategy of the new slogan are J Walter Thompson, the world's best-known marketing communications brand – has been reimagining the future for businesses for over 154 years. J Walter Thompson was chosen through a competitive bidding process by the Bureau.

The new destination brand also saw the culmination of many ideas from several key industry stakeholders in the private sector who infused their thinking and recommendations to create a new brand identity.

The official launch

Endorsed by the latest feat as being adjudged the number 1 destination for 2019 by Lonely Planet the country’s destination promotion gained international recognition by participating at the World Travel Mart 2018.

This event was held at the Excel Exhibition Hall, London on 5 th Nov. On offer were exclusive opportunities for travel companies and industry stake holders to strengthen their network, connect, share and exchange ideas and concepts and create productive partnerships.

Sri Lanka Tourism has been an active member of WTM for many years joined by the local travel industry. A delegation consisting of 60 industry partners joined Sri Lanka Tourism to highlight Sri Lanka as a world class tourism hot spot, with a variety of numerous travel and hospitality products, including the world-famous Ceylon tea.