The impact of e- services on cultural heritage towards the tourism in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Tourism is the fastest growing field in Sri Lanka. Cultural Heritage tourism involves visiting places that are significant to the past and present cultural identity. This paper discusses the use of in-depth focus groups to assess tourist’s preferences of e- services that would enhance cultural heritage. In recent years in Sri Lanka, internet had become one of the most powerful media and the source of information. This main aim of this paper is to identify the impact of e- services on cultural heritage towards the tourism in Sri Lanka. Since Sri Lanka is very rich with the cultural heritage, the e- services will be extremely important towards the tourism in Sri Lanka. This research was conducted with focus group discussions and hence, this is a descriptive research. Through the research findings, it was identified that the e- service provide the highest impact towards the tourism industry as it is the most cost effective manner of communicating with target markets and disseminating information, representing quick and easy way for tourists. As Sri Lanka is rich in cultural heritage, the e- service impact is essential to enhance the tourism industry. The research identified that e- services in Sri Lanka are not well managed and it is not spreading the information related to cultural heritage and it’s basically focusing the new trends and leisure activities. However, Sri Lankan e - services promoted one sector and it does not pay enough attention towards the cultural heritage in Sri Lanka. There is less attention paid on the cultural heritage on e-severances and it has impacted tourism in Sri Lanka. Hence, Sri Lankan tourist authorities should prioritize the e- services related to cultural heritage in order to enhance more tourist’s attention in Sri Lanka.