A candid conversation with leading Sri Lankan journalist and reporter Savithri Rodrigo, about Sri Lanka's need to manage the island's resources, protect its core assets, and prioritise the well-being of local residents, ahead of marketing and promoting the island for tourism.

From over-tourism to carrying capacities when micro-destination master planning, to ensuring the well-being of local communities, listen-in as we explore what priorities lie ahead for both public and private sector stakeholders driving tourism in Sri Lanka.

Tourism is crucial for Sri Lanka’s economic success and it's also a sector that’s dependent on the health of natural environments and ecosystems. Here Senith Abeyanayake of the Centre for a Smart Future discusses the opportunity around tourism and its relationship with the environment with former government policy lead, Rashmini Mather, Co-founder and Managing Director, Mosvold Boutique Hotels, Nilanka Martinus and Chalana Perera, Founder of RETRACE Hospitality.

Take a captivating journey to the heart of sustainable hospitality in Sri Lanka with Chalana Perera, the trailblazing founder of Retrace Hospitality. In this eye-opening episode, Chalana Perera shares his unique path from commercial real estate to championing regenerative tourism practices that prioritize both people and the planet. Discover the challenges and opportunities facing Sri Lanka's tourism industry, and learn how Chalana is bridging the gap between grassroots initiatives and business stakeholders to create a more sustainable future. Whether you're a seasoned hotelier or a curious traveler, this episode will inspire you to rethink the way you approach hospitality and explore the untapped potential of regenerative practices. Join us as we uncover the hidden gems of Sri Lanka and embark on a transformative adventure in sustainable hospitality!

What does impactful tourism mean for Asia’s most densely biodiverse country? At the Galle Literary Festival 2024, Chalana Perera, founder of RETRACE Hospitality, chaired a discussion on Sri Lanka’s potential to become a sustainable destination. Joined by Simon Bell, co-owner of social enterprise AMBA Estate, Chamintha Jayasinghe of Ayu in the Wild, an experiential travel company, Miguel Cunat, creator of the Pekoe Trail and Sam Bleakley, filmmaker and surf writer. This conversation packed-a-punch!

RETRACE Hospitality founder Chalana Perera featured on Sri Lanka’s late night talk show, Face the Nation discussing how to “protect Sri Lanka’s tourism sector”. On the backlash of travel advisories, the panelists discuss destination branding, positioning and narratives for Sri Lanka.

According to Perera, "the government must adopt a 'less is more' mindset, in which quality is prioritized over quantity, and where regulation around construction of new hotels, coastal and national park encroachment, visitor capacity and exploitation of natural resources and wildlife [and a] minimum wage for tourism sector professionals, must be developed and consistently, strictly enforced," he says.

In this exclusive interview with ASTB Asia's Sustainable Travel Changemaker, Chalana Perera, we learn about his sustainability journey - from personal transformation to shifting the industry’s paradigm at a holistic and systemic level.

The webinar targets investors, developers and operators active in or interested in Sri Lanka’s growing tourism sector. Chalana emphasizes adopting a sustainable mindset, offers practical sustainability tips for tourism businesses, explores strategies to avoid greenwashing, and introduces the concept of regenerative travel.

As part of the Hospitality Net World Panel on Sustainability, industry Expert Chalana Perera provided case studies and insights from the grassroots in Sri Lanka. A meaningful guest experience entails genuine human connection(s) with local host(s) while being able to embrace and respect the sensitivities of natural ecosystems within a destination.

International Labor Organisation: In the latest in our series spotlighting young entrepreneurs in SriLanka, we focus on Chalana Perera, who advises clients on ‘regenerative tourism’ – which moves away from exploitative tourism practices, while improving the environment and communities.

Chalana Perera explores the sensitivities of hotel development as part of the Hospitality Net World Panel on Sustainability. He suggests “Developers and investors will seek out operators who are well-nuanced in environmentally sensitive best practices for hospitality operations, including but not limited to: circular operating models (zero or low-waste), localizing supply chains, limiting resource-intensive ancillary [services], placing employee well-being at the center of operations, and ecosystems and resource regeneration efforts (waste water treatment, conversion of waste to energy, etc).

Regenerative tourism is a catalyst for systemic change and more equitable wealth distribution. While sustainable tourism reduces negative impacts and avoids depleting resources, regeneration goes a step beyond…

Today I’m delighted to be joined by Chalana Perera who is the Founder of RETRACE Hospitality in Sri Lanka.

RETRACE Hospitality is an advisory practice which works together with investors, developers and operators in the hospitality tourism space to bring more regenerative practices into the sector.

In this first episode of two, I talk to Chalana about what it means when we talk about regenerative tourism, how is it conceptualised in Sri Lanka today, have things changed since the onset of the financial crisis in Sri Lanka last year and is slow travel replacing mass tourism in Sri Lanka?

After a decade of exploitative tourism growth, Sri Lanka’s tourism boom came to a rapid halt because of a terrorist attack and the pandemic as well as a corruption-induced economic crisis that ultimately led to a shortage of imported goods, including fossil fuels, and electricity in 2022. This proved to be an opportunity to reset tourism on the island, transforming Sri Lanka’s hospitality landscape from being extractive to more regenerative and the Sri Lanka-based consultancy organization RETRACE™ Hospitality provides support to achieve this.

Exploring how the tourism sector, within the context of broader economies, can harness nature-based solutions to drive value creation for all stakeholders. We discuss greenwashing among larger players and green-hushing across MSMEs, while challenging the role financial institutions play in the advancement of nature-based s

Chalana was a contributing author to this international textbook. Informed by the scholarly and practical viewpoints of a myriad of internationally recognised experts, this engaging and timely volume poses a set of pertinent questions that cover critical and contemporary sustainability issues in hospitality and tourism and proposes actionable solutions. Embellished with informative tables, diagrams and photographs, key questions are discussed from a variety of angles.

Regenerative tourism is the future of tourism worldwide. The concept stems from the process of regeneration, which is in effect a biological process of continuous improvement and healing. Regenerative tourism is not only about improving the quality of the local environment and communities in a destination, but also about the holistic well-being of the tourist/traveller themselves.

In order to deliver real economic and monetary value in the long-term, Chalana encourages Sri Lanka’s tourism sector to transform from being “numbers-minded and air-conditioned big-building obsessed” to an industry that is driven by “quality, impact and well-being for people and the planet”.

A one-minute SWOT analysis of an entire island’s tourism sector and some thought-provoking opinions on why Sri Lanka’s tourism sector has failed on many fronts. Watch as Savithri Rodrigo interviews Chalana Perera for five minutes of insights and perspectives!

We caught up with Sri Lankan local, Chalana Perera from Retrace Hospitality who is on the ground in Sri Lanka as he paints an accurate picture of the blossoming, truly regenerative, tourism which is happening just now.

We don’t need million-dollar projects, large hotels, and mega complexes, which import raw materials and require borrowed capital. Our natural asset is our country, the natural beauty is what people come for. And that requires little investment but will generate tremendous economic value and social upliftment of our communities, cascading to a higher quality of life.

Perera from RETRACE Hospitality makes a good case for the importance of regeneration in any kind of travel activity, including community-based travel. In the case of regeneration in tourism, Perera adds that, “it has to translate to doing better on a holistic and systemic level, such that the business facilitates and delivers continuous improvement for all stakeholders over the business lifecycle.”

Sustainability for hospitality and tourism - the only way forward? Founder of RETRACE Hospitality Chalana explores the subject with Denise Naguib- VP, Sustainability & Supplier Diversity at Marriot International (Washington DC), Willem Neimeijer: CEO & Founder, YAANA Ventures (Bangkok, Thailand), Adrian Flueck: Director at Invesco Real Estate, Asset Management / Hotels (Munich, DE), Suzannah Newham: Senior Sustainability Advisor, Considerate Group (London, UK) as part of the Young Hoteliers Summit 2022 Virtual Conference.

Good Life X had the opportunity to speak with commercial real estate and hospitality enthusiast Chalana Perera on how some tourism players worldwide have embraced the Pandemic. Chalana believes the Pandemic has provided Sri Lanka’s tourism sector with a unique opportunity to stand out against competition by using travel and tourism as a force for good.

“Undoubtedly the finest island of its size in the world” proclaimed Marco Polo upon visiting Sri Lanka in the 13th century. ‘Pearl of the Indian Ocean’; ‘Emerald Isle’ – Sri Lanka has held many different names throughout its long and rich history. Home to eight stunning UNESCO World Heritage Sites, this relatively small island packs a punch with its deep diversity of culture, natural beauty and ancient history.

Chalana Perera lived in Europe before moving to his native Sri Lanka to start his own venture RETRACE Hospitality, a private advisory practice specialised in regenerative hospitality investments. Passionate about regeneration, his home country and hospitality, Chalana is on a mission to empower and encourage local developers and operators to protect and preserve natural habitats, local communities and a rich and deep-rooted culture through purpose-driven hospitality investments.

Chalana is dedicated to the promotion of Sri Lanka as a truly sustainable destination and we are so proud to call him a friend of Low Season Traveller.

So let’s hear from the man himself as we welcome Chalana to the podcast to tell us all about the wonderful low seasons in his home in the Indian Ocean

Chalana Perera, Ex-Citizen M and Ex-Yays came to visit us for episode 6 of season 2 and told us how his interest in real estate development for hotels sparked at an early stage of his career. He also gave us an insight into his entrepreneurial mindset. Chalana also explains his thoughts behind relocating back home to Sri Lanka after several years working and studying abroad. Enjoy the show!

As development accelerates, both investors and policy-makers have fostered the progression of many sustainable and eco-tourism ventures. The Sinharaja Rainforest and Horton Plains, designated Biosphere Reserves and World Heritage Sites by UNESCO, are two regions where sustainable tourism thrives. The Kalpitiya eco-tourism zone’s lagoons and winds are ideal for kite surfing and kayaking, besides great opportunities for whale and dolphin watching.