In a refreshing departure from convention, three competing hospitality brands around Sri Lanka’s scenic Victoria Lake came together on 10th and 11th July 2026 to host The Victoria Open – DMC Challenge, a two-day familiarisation trip designed to showcase the destination rather than any single property. 

The Glasshouse Victoria, owned by Shiran and Paul Topping; Ishq Digana, run by Isabel Jamaldeen; and Bougainvillea Retreat, managed by Pi Fernandez, jointly welcomed representatives from some of Sri Lanka’s leading destination management companies, including DTH Travel, Jetwing, Sri Lanka Travel Collection, Trip Fusion and Far Out. 

Framed as a light-hearted ‘challenge’, the fam trip divided participants into teams, each based at a different property. Over two days, agents explored the region around the Victoria Reservoir and the celebrated Victoria Golf Resort, an area of outstanding natural beauty within easy reach of Kandy, Gal Oya and Sigiriya, and just minutes from the Cinnamon Air landing point. Highlights included a visit to the 2,000-year-old Bambaragala Temple, the Pettigala hike above it, an introduction to golf on the greens of Victoria, and a closing team quiz to reinforce the destination knowledge gained. 

The event was conceptualised and delivered by Jessica Joseph, Head of DMC Sales and Reservations at Secrets of Ceylon Collection, which handles sales and marketing for The Glasshouse Victoria. Jessica is a mentee of the Women in Travel Collective, and The Victoria Open reflects a growing movement of collaborative, destination-first marketing led by young talent in the industry. 

Feedback from participating agents was unanimously warm. Mohamed Insaf, Manager at DTH, described it as a wonderful initiative and thanked the organisers for the effort behind it. Dilini and Nazla of DTH Travel called it a memorable trip that allowed them to get to know the area, the properties and the people behind them, while Ramika and Fayaz of Trip Fusion praised a tour that was ‘very well planned and enjoyable from start to finish’, noting it gave them valuable ideas to incorporate into their own itineraries. Shash and Rashan of Far Out summed up the spirit of the event: a great collaboration, good fun, and fresh perspective to take back to the work desk. 

By pooling their resources and audiences, the three properties have demonstrated that when hotels compete less and collaborate more, the destination wins, and so does Sri Lankan tourism.