Sri Lanka’s International recognition flies high as the Colombo International Kite Festival ends up on a successful note

The much awaited Colombo International Kite Festival, organized by Sri Lanka Tourism, in collaboration with Derana Media Network, concluded successfully with a ground breaking number of visitors, participants and the public coming to the Galle Face Green, to witness one of the most colorful and glamourous events of the year. Sri Lanka received the opportunity of hosting the much renowned festival this year, also hosting this spectacular event for the first time. This has been a great promotional opportunity for Sri Lanka as it receives a large number of tourists to the country on a daily basis, and attract more tourist arrivals. Being the proud host of this event will only increase the popularity of Sri Lanka, as a country which celebrates a myriad of festivals throughout the year, including the Esala Festival, The Sinhala and Hindu New Year, Thai Pongal festival etc. This golden opportunity also indicated that Sri Lanka was ready to welcome and host any International festival successfully, with its glamorous culture and world renowned hospitality. Sri Lanka Tourism was instrumental in organizing this major event in collaboration with Derana Media Network, under the Colombo destination branding project, transforming Colombo as a hub of cultural celebration and friendship.

The main purpose of this festival was to promote peace, unity, and tradition among all nations, displaying their creativity and talent, identical to each country. This year’s festival featured 55 International kite flyers from 25 countries across five continents, whereas the Galle Face Green was decorated with craftsmanship and talent, carrying a silent message of peace and unity across the Colombo skies. A total number of  500 Sri Lankan Kite enthusiasts participated at this event, bringing the entire city of Colombo to an enigmatic  hub of art, music, dance, and culinary experiences, to explore and enjoy. The 55 participants represented countries such as Germany, Netherlands, Malaysia, Indonesia, China, Thailand, France, Australia, and Vietnam. Each country displayed it’s uniqueness and identity through their kite traditions and cultural flair, creating a vivid picture of colours. Further, the 55 participants spent 3 weeks in Sri Lanka, getting a wonderful experience of Sri Lankas culture, tradition, and authentic Sri Lankan cuisine with spectacular tourism attractions. They were very much impressed with the excellent hospitality of the Sri Lankan people and the myriad of travel opportunities they could find, with easy accessibility to each attraction.

After 4 consecutive days of successfully drawing crowds from each part of Sri Lanka to witness this event at the Galle face Green, the Colombo International Kite festival ended up with all those who participated having the opportunity of joining for a gala dinner hosted by Sri Lanka Tourism, Under the patronage of Hon. Deputy Minister of Tourism, Prof. Ruwan Ranasinghe , making it an opportunity to interact and exchange ideas and opportunities, strengthen the friendship among both local and International counterparts.

The Derana International Kite festival initiated as the brainchild of the Lokaya saha Lokayo Programme , which began in 2015 , and was a part of the popular programme .Gradually it turned into a fine tuned , world class festival , drawing international acclaim and participation. Sri Lanka represented several prestigious kite festivals in Malaysia, Thailand, India, China, and France. The opportunity of hosting the first Interactional kite festival was the ultimate result.  Therefore, the Colombo International kite festival joins the ranks of iconic global events such as:

• Gujarats International Kite Festival (India)
• Weifang Kite festival (China)
• Dieppe Kite festival (France)
• Pasir Gudang Festival (Malaysia)
• Washington State Kite Festival (USA)

Thus this renowned festival not only bring pride to Sri Lanka as a tourism destination, holding its first International Kite festival, but also opening new doorways to other options such as promoting Sri Lanka’s unique tourism attractions and products, providing endless travel and holiday opportunities for the modern traveler to enjoy.