Sri Lanka has launched a "Culinary Tourism" campaign to attract travellers and food enthusiasts from around the world, including Thailand, to visit a country which has been dubbed the Pearl of the Indian Ocean.
The new campaign is a government effort to restore confidence in its tourism sector following the deadly terrorist bombings on the island in April.
The Sri Lankan embassy in Thailand recently held a press conference to launch its "Culinary Tourism" website. It said Sri Lanka is not only a paradise for its wildlife and nature biodiversity but also its food with has been influenced by a variety of cultures, including traders from West Asia in ancient times and its colonists, particularly the Portuguese and Dutch.
John Amaratunga, minister of Tourism, Wildlife and Christian Affairs for Sri Lanka, who was there, said the tourism industry is a key aspect of the country's economy and has been badly impacted by the attacks, with hotel bookings having fallen dramatically.
"Please be assured that the country is now safe for tourists who we are welcoming with our food and culture promotion campaigns," said Mr Amaratunga.
He said China, Germany, India, Sweden and Switzerland have downgraded their travel advisories from "do not travel" to "be cautious while travelling", while Thailand hadn't issued a travel advisory, only contact details for those affected by the attacks.
Sri Lanka's Tourism Bureau found that the number of tourists has dropped by half since the Easter Sunday bombings that killed over 250 people. It estimated that the loss of tourism income was around 24 trillion baht. About 2.5 million tourists visit the country each year on average, of which 10,000 come from Thailand.
Sri Lanka's ambassador to Thailand Kshenuka Senewiratne said the two countries have developed relations for over eight centuries and shared many religious and culinary similarities.
Considering this aspect, Ms Senewiratne said there is no doubt that Thai travellers enjoy eating Sri Lankan food.
She said in addition to this, diplomatic ties between the two countries remain solid after Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha's official visit to Sri Lanka in July last year.
"I am confident that we can actively pursue together the further strengthening of the tourism industry of Sri Lanka while forging people to people contact. Let us move forward in earnest, to be one family in two countries,'' she said.
Sri Lanka is now offering a 24-hour online visa application service, and an official trip under the stewardship of the Tourism Authority of Thailand will be arranged in the near future.