Sri Lanka Tourism took top honours in the 2011 United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) poster competition, becoming the winner for the ‘Best Tourism Poster’ award in the South Asia region.
The Vettor Giusti tourism poster competition is held every two years on the occasion of the sessions of the UNWTO General Assembly and provides an opportunity to showcase the creativity and beauty found in the posters used to promote tourism in each country. The Vettor Giusti tourism poster competition is open to all the Member States of the UNWTO and is channelled exclusively through their national tourism administrations. Sri Lanka is full member of UNWTO from its inception. Each member country was invited to submit one poster. During the 19th session of the General Assembly in Gyeongju, Republic of Korea, in October 2011, the winners were announced.
The poster developed under the new tagline for ‘Visit Sri Lanka’ – ‘Refreshingly Sri Lanka,’ the word is apt considering the brand new Sri Lanka Tourism showcase to the world.
To promote eight segments, Sri Lanka Tourism has identified symbolising the eight letters in ‘Sri Lanka’ since the island has eight wonderful experiences which tourists can enjoy within eight days. The eight segments are pristine, heritage, bliss, thrill, festive, essence, scenic and wild, which are represented by eight colours of the logo, with a colour for each segment. One of the key segments Sri Lanka Tourism wants to promote is ‘Wild’ to highlight the wildlife assets in Sri Lanka. The winning poster showcased the Sri Lankan leopards.
At the venue of the General Assembly, the top five most voted posters of each region were displayed. The winning posters will be posted on the UNWTO website until the next edition of the Vettor Giusti poster competition at the 2013 General Assembly. Furthermore, the winning posters will be on display in the entrance hall of the UNWTO building in Madrid until the end of the 2013 General Assembly.