Citrus Aqua offers exciting professional water based recreational activities in Sri Lanka
August 15, 2011 11:09 am
The Subsidiary of Citrus Leisure is out to set a new industry standard by creating a high-value niche tourism opportunity in the country.
August 2011, Bolgoda, Sri Lanka: Being a brand with a vision to be positioned as the ultimate hospitality trademark in Sri Lanka, Citrus Leisure PLC has, within a very short period of time, become a powerhouse in the leisure industry with still more ambitious plans to build and manage a chain of distinctive resorts - a chain benchmarked against the most coveted in the world and built to exploit the beautiful and picturesquewaterfront landscapes of Sri Lanka.
It is with that vision in mind that Citrus Leisure PLC designed and developed, and today launched its subsidiary Citrus Aqua – which will single mindedly focus on providing professional water based recreational activities for tourists.
Citrus Aquawhich will specialize in creating custom tailored activities to suit individual needs, taking into account the diversity that is expected, the time dedicated to the activity, and the cost. The Company will target both local and foreign tourists who take special interest in such activities by giving them a professional service that thecountrywill be renowned for.Sri Lanka is blessed with an abundance of estuaries, lagoons, rivers, streams, natural lakes and man-made reservoirs, and 1,340 km of coastline and an unexploited ocean extending from the Equator to the South Pole. According to the experts behind the initiative, this makes our island paradise second to none when it comes to water based tourism.
The team at Citrus Aqua will be spearheaded by professional experts with a thorough knowledge of regional waters and international best practices: Suresh de Mel, the Managing Director of Lanka Fishing Flies, who arguably produces the world’s best quality fishing flies, has been dominating the global fly fishing industry for the past 30-years. Damith Wickramasinghe, a veteran angler who has fished in and around Sri Lanka for 40-years, is one who considers water to be his second home. Howard Martenstyn, a passionate conservationist and new-generation aqua recreation and outdoor personality, specializes in dolphin and whale watching and engages in research.
The Company, which was launched in Bolgoda Lake, is now geared to offer, carefully crafted packages to suit tourists with varied interests, with the resources of well trained staff and using state of the art equipment which are on par with international safety standards. According to Prema Cooray, the Chairman of Citrus Leisure PLC, “As believers of innovation, Citrus Leisure is proud to launch Citrus Aqua today and I am confident that this will be one of the many ‘firsts’ that our Company will achieve on the path to seeing our vision become reality. Through this initiative we hope to attract the attention of high spending and serious travelers around the world – luring them to visit Sri Lanka, adding unparalleled value to Sri Lankan Tourism.”
Suresh de Mel, Managing Director of Citrus Aqua further added, “I’m so pleased to be part of a team who passionately believes in Sri Lanka’s immense potential forprofessionalwater based recreation. Our stance is to make Sri Lanka proud and we hope to actively promote good practices in responsible tourism on a global stage by participating in world tourist fairs and promoting these activities online via www.citrusaqua.com”
Citrus Leisure PLC entered the tourism industry with a clear vision, to present the best of Sri Lankan hospitality to the world and the Company today owns 3 properties - Citrus Hikkaduwa (50 roomed property presently under refurbishment and expansion up to 90 rooms) whilst also being in the process of finalizing the construction of 2 more strategic coastal properties, namely Citrus Waskaduwaand Citrus Kalpitiya (both 150 roomed luxury resorts to be completed in December 2012).Founded on creating “happiness moments” in the holiday maker’s stay in Sri Lanka, Citrus is focused on delighting their guests at the Citrus properties with a service standard that transcends ordinary expectations.
Photo caption: Top from left - Mr. Sarva Ameresekere, Director Citrus Aqua, Ms. Varuni Amunugama Fernando – Director Citrus Aqua, Mr. Howard Martenstyn – Director Citrus Aqua, Mr. Prema Cooray – Chairman Citrus Leisure PLC, Dr. Nalaka Godahewa – Chairman Sri Lanka Tourism, Chief Guest to the event – Vice Admiral Somathilake Dissanayake – Navy Commander, Mr. Suresh de Mel, Managing Director of Citrus Aqua, Mr. Manoj Pilimathalawwe – Director Citrus Aqua, Mr. Rayynor Silva – Director Citrus Aqua, Mr. Kumar De Silva – Director Citrus Aqua & Mr. Dilith Jayaweera Director Citrus Aqua. Absent – Mr. Damith Wickramasinghe– Director Operation Citrus Aqua. Below (left) Suresh de Mel, Managing Director of Citrus Aqua addressing the gathering and Mr. Rayynor Silva – Director Citrus Aqua.
