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Bounce Back Sri Lanka |
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Update 1st June 2006 |
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We have now completed work on over 125 Guest houses through out Sri Lanka either building from scratch or repairing. Most of them are reopen and have had their first tourist season. The bounce back is slow due to tourists' being unsure of Sri Lanka as a holiday destination since the tsunami. Whilst there is a limit to the number of guest houses we can help, we are pushing forward with a marketing programme to bring back the tourist dollar.
The best way to help Sri Lanka to recover is to come and visit it and to spend money in the local economy for a range of unforgettable holidays. Please visit www.srilankainstyle.com
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Helping small guest houses and tourist related industries
With the help of 4 very generous grants from the Rough Guide Book series, The Mandarin Hotel, PATA and the Kadoori Foundation, we have now helped small guest houses return to work from Hikkaduwa to Tangalle.
AdoptSriLanka
Rough Guide Report February 2006
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In the Tangalle area, tourism has long been one of the main contributors to the local economy. After fishing, tourism is the largest official employment sector and it supports the livelihoods of virtually every other type of business in the area. This sector received no help from any business sector, the government or NGOs for more than 2 months after the Tsunami and significant funds were required to assist in its rebuilding. The idea was that, understanding well the resourcefulness of these guesthouse owners, even with a minimum contribution initially of around 10% of budget to each guest house, they would be given the will and means to start rebuilding. To complete the projects some businesses were funded with up to 90% of the cost of rebuilding with the average being in excess of 70%.
Implementation
Initially, we gave all the guest houses owners a $ 1,000 credit at the local merchants. We set up an account with the main hardware firm in the area, Wijesuriya Hardware. They are well respected in the community and have given much of their own money to support those in need. We gave them a list of approved guest houses and a maximum expenditure per guesthouse. We compiled a “menu” of essential materials (e.g. sand, gravel, cement, bricks, wood, roofing sheets, roof tiles, etc…) so that the guesthouse owners were able to order accordingly, up to their credit limit. Wijesuriya Hardware is also the main supplier of heavy plant machinery in the area and they make all their own deliveries. We managed to negotiate a discount with them across all materials and services in the region 10%.
We returned regularly to the guesthouses to assess how the owners had used the initial grant and made further monies available to them if they had been responsible.
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Ram's guesthouse: in Midigama was the first guesthouse to recover and open for business. It has been the destination for many years for the surfing community and was totally destroyed in the tsunami. With the help of Rs 150,000 the guesthouse was restored and open for business and ready for the peak season.
In the Tangalle area, your donation was allocated to 34 guesthouses and restaurants, divided in different amounts: from $520 to $5000 per guesthouse according to their needs.
Individual stories
- Wavy Ocean Guesthouse: The restaurant of this 7 bedroom 7 bathroom guesthouse was completely raised to the ground. Also the ground floor bedrooms were extensively damaged. Following a complete rebuild of the restaurant and the kitchen and refurbishment of the ground floor bedrooms, the guesthouse reopened for this season. The help given was Rs 285,000.
- Samans Guesthouse: The guest house has 8 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms and a large reception room, dining room, kitchen and garden patio. The work required included the replacement of the dining room roof, the reception room roof, the garden patio and also total refurbishment of the 3 ground floor bedrooms and bathrooms. The guest house is now fully open. The help given was Rs 300,000.
- Sarath Guesthouse: This guest house had damage to all doors, windows, furniture and fittings and also the boundary wall. It is now fully open. The help given was Rs100,000.
- Shanika Guesthouse :Located directly on the bay, the building was extensively damaged. Restoration work required included repairing cracked walls, plaster work, replacing all doors and windows, replacing all plumbing and sanitary ware. The help given was Rs 400,000. The guest house is now fully open.
- Seaside Guesthouse: The restaurant and the kitchen of this guest house were completely flattened and the 3 bedrooms and bathrooms badly damaged. After a complete rebuild of the kitchen and restaurant, including replacement of fridge, freezer and other electrical items and also the refurbishment of the bedrooms and bathrooms, the guesthouse reopened for business. The help given was Rs 304,000.
- Namal Guesthouse: This property is located directly on the beach. It consists of 14 bedrooms and 14 bathrooms on 2 floors, a very large wedding hall/restaurant and a kitchen. Although the structure of the building survived, the ground floor rooms and the kitchen required extensive refurbishment, including rewiring. The guest house is now fully open. Help given was Rs 400,000.
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Rams Guest House
Typical Damage Following tsunami
Hotel Samans after restorations
Shanika Guest House
Turtles Landing restaurant after restoration
Namal guesthouse after restoration
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Thanks to your donation Rs 10.000,000, [$100,000] has been spent overall on these guesthouses and restaurants.
One year after this project was launched, many of the guest houses and restaurants have been rebuilt and refurbished. Thus all these people could re-open for the first high tourist season since the Tsunami and re-start their businesses |
| Summary of Funds Allocation |
| Name |
Amount rec $ |
| Beach Palace Guesthouse |
$4000 |
| Gaminis Guesthouse |
$3300 |
| Indra Cool Spot Restaurant |
$520 |
| Lagoon Paradise Beach Guesthouse |
$5000 |
| Lagoon Wadiya Guesthouse |
$4260 |
| Lets Dive |
$4800 |
| Maheshsika Guesthouse |
$3000 |
| Mallika Guesthouse |
$5000 |
| Manahara Beach Cabanas |
$2333 |
| Mayurirodrigo Guesthouse |
$4000 |
| Namal Garden Beach Hotel |
$4000 |
| Natural Cabanas |
$2500 |
| New Sun Flower Guesthouse |
$2370 |
| Rams Guesthouse |
$1500 |
| Sachit Guesthouse |
$2000 |
| Sadeena Guesthouse |
$2000 |
| Saliya Guesthouse |
$1050 |
| Samans Guesthouse |
$3000 |
| Sandys Guesthouse |
$5000 |
| Santana Guesthouse |
$4676 |
| Sarath Guesthouse |
$1000 |
| Sea Beach Restaurant |
$3000 |
| Seaside Guesthouse |
$3037 |
| Shanika Guesthouse |
$4000 |
| Star Island Guesthouse |
$5000 |
| Sudvali Guesthouse |
$1000 |
| Sun & Sea Guesthouse |
$3000 |
| Sun Shadow Restaurant |
$1095 |
| Sunrise Cabanas |
$2000 |
| Swasthika Hotel |
$750 |
| The Chalet Restaurant |
$4691 |
| Tropical Gardens Guesthouse |
$5000 |
| Turtles Landing Restaurant |
$1930 |
| Wavy Ocean Guesthouse |
$2850 |
| Winnes Restaurant |
$1500 |
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| Total |
$104,162 |
“Sri Lanka is back in business” see individual reports below.
We welcome suggestions for assistance and promotion of the Sri Lankan tourist business to bounce fully back.
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