Lao Ecotourism Travel Fair and the Conference were held from 26-29th July, 2007 at the Don Chan Palace Hotel, Vientiane, Laos. The event was convened by Lao National Tourism Administration. Sri Lanka Ecotourism Foundation (SLEF) in association with the Lao Ecotourism Society has made elaborate arrangements to offer an exiting experience to those who are active in the ecotourism field in Sri Lanka. At the same time, this event was an excellent opportunity to Ecotourism Business Organizations, Ecotourism NGOs, and, National Tourism Organizations, development agencies, academics and academic institutions, consulting firms, tour operators, travel agents, accommodation providers that have an interest in sustainable ecotourism development in Sri Lanka and Asia-Pacific Region.

On the initiatives taken by Sri Lanka Ecotourism Foundation (SLEF), the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises in Tourism Sri Lanka (ASMET) decided to take part at the Conference. The initiative taken by the SLEF to promote the event was well taken by the Ministry of Tourism and Sri Lanka Tourist Board.

It was for the first time that Sri Lanka Tourism, took part at a regional fair held in Indo-China region, showcasing and share experience in Sri Lanka Ecotourism products, with ecotourism operators round the world, especially in South East Asia and Asia-Pacific Region. This Ecotourism Forum also offered an important opportunity to explore new markets in the Asia-Pacific Regions.

The Peoples’ Democratic Republic of Laos, predominantly a Buddhist country that practices the Theravada Buddhism for centuries. Sri Lanka is also one of the few countries that practices Theravada Buddhism. During the time of disputes between Buddhist sects in Sri Lanka, particularly Mahayana and Theravada, in 5th to 8th Centuries AD, the Kings of Sri Lanka used to invite erudite Buddhist monks from Laos, Thailand, Burma to settle the disputes and conduct ceremonies of higher ordination. Therefore, Sri Lanka and Laos and other countries in Indo-China Region had maintained very important religious and cultural ties for centuries.

The Peoples’ Democratic Republic of Laos is located in the center of Indochina, sharing borders with China to the North 416 kilometers, Myanmar to Northwest 236 kilometers, Thailand to the West 1,835 kilometers, Cambodia to the South 492 kilometers and Vietnam to the East 1,957 kilometers.

With a total area of 236,800 square kilometers, around 70% of Laos' terrain is mountainous, reaching a maximum elevation of 2,820 meters in Xieng Khouang Province. The landscapes of northern Laos and the regions adjacent to Vietnam, in particular, are dominated by rough mountains.

The Mekong River is the main geographical feature in the west and, in fact, forms a natural border with Thailand in some areas. The Mekong flows through nearly 1,900 kilometers of Lao territory and shapes much of the lifestyle of the people of Laos. In the South the Mekong reaches a breadth of 20 kilometers, creating an area with thousands of islands.

The Travel Fair was ceremonially opened by the Heads of States of Lao PDR on the 26th morning coupled with a lot of traditional colorful ceremonies. At the opening ceremony, Sri Lanka was represented by Palitha Gurusinghe, General Secretary, ASMET and the President of Sri Lanka Ecotourism Foundation, Siri De Silva, Senior Vice President and, ASMET, Mrs. C.De Silva, Hiran Cooray, Chairman, Jetwing Hotels, Sanath Weerasooriya, Vice-President, SLEF and Jagath Harshana, Coordinator, Sewalanka Foundation.

The opening of the Travel Fair followed by many other interesting events such as conferences, workshops, seminars, one to one meetings with the industry representatives, fun runs, food festivals, fashion shows, gala dinners etc. ASMET represented Sri Lanka Tourism at the ‘Sri Lanka booth that was well arranged and decorated with a typical Sri Lankan traditional style. Visitors to the Sri Lanka stall, from the tourism industry and the consumers were really fascinated about Sri Lanka, as most of them came across for the first time. Specially, most of the visitors were being Theravada Buddhists wanted to know about Buddhism and how they could visit Buddhist cultural and archaeological sites in Sri Lanka. At the same time, the leading travel agents from Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia, and Thailand visited Sri Lanka stall and discussed tourism businesses of mutual benefit.