Reply To: (Revised): Sri Lankan Airlines and donations

#7601

I’ve emailed Jetwing, as considering visiting, and received the following email:

Quote:
Thank you for getting in touch with Jetwing Eco Holidays!

Your kind concern and encouraging words are greatly appreciated at this time and it will help our country and its people to start rebuilding their lives again.

At this point in time your visit to Sri Lanka is most need as so many local communities depend on the tourist for their sole livelihood. Your visit will encourage them to start rebuilding their lives and to get back on their feet again.

With reference to your query, the interior of the country is total in tact and even some coastal hotels of the affected areas are now fully operational.
Most nature tourists are going ahead with their tours as most places visited by nature tourist have not been affected by the tsunami disaster and the infrastructure is intact.

We in fact have a tour group named Ornitholidays from the UK due to arrive today for a 2 weeks birding tour. We also have many individual nature travellers arriving within the next few weeks and months.
Therefore, I suggest that you go ahead with your planed tour to Sri Lanka. This will be one of the best ways that anyone can help to rebuild the countries that affected by this disaster.

Since you have 9 days (8-16 Feb) for your tour, I will tailor an 8 nights and 9 days Wildlife& Birding tour itinerary for you. I hope to include a few days in the rainforest, which will give you a chance of seening many endemic birds and some small mammals. Also a couple of nights in Yala for all the big game, shorebirds, etc. As you say Yala Village is undamaged, and the Yala National Park was reopened just a few days ago, which is encouraging news to us all.
The hill country can also be visited so that you can see the Himalayan migrants and some of the most beautiful terrains in the country. I will try to fit in a few more places of interest to you, like the Udawalawe National Park, which is one of the best places to see elephants.

Please bear with me for a few days, in order that I send you a tailored itinerary.

Thank you once again for your effort to help our country and the the many people who are depended on the tourism industry to get back on their feet again. Tourists’ visits give us the heart to carry on even with so much pain around us.

Look forward to a fruitful dialogue.

Kind regards,

Ayanthi