COVID-scared villagers force tourists out of 3 hotels in N’Eliya

• Industry concerned by incident and failure by Police
• Complaint lodged with Tourism Development Authority

By Charumini de Silva

Fearing COVID-19, a group of outraged villagers in Nuwara Eliya have recently prevented around 50 tourists from taking accommodation at three hotels, Daily FT learns. 

The incident, which the Police had failed to prevent, has caused concern within the tourism industry which is in crisis and struggling to retain the few tourists it has. The tourists had been prevented from entering the hotel with road blockages by protesting villagers. Thereafter the tour operator had eventually relocated the tourists to a beach resort. 

The three hotels have already lodged a formal complaint with the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) with regard to the incidents.

Noting that the incidents that took place were unfortunate, hoteliers called on the COVID-19 Task Force to create more awareness of the virus and how they should behave in order to prevent such violent incidents.

“Those villagers engaged in the tourism industry are aware of the situation, but some see foreign tourists at this time as a threat. This is purely because of lack of knowledge about the virus,” he added.

It was also pointed out that some tourism hotspots in the country had been completely shut down for businesses till 4 April, sending out an anti-hospitality vibe to foreigners who are already in the country.

“COVID-19 will not last for over two to three months and most of the Small and Medium Entrepreneurs will have to return to their normal lifestyles. We need to have some faith that we will overcome this situation and prevent such violation and discrimination happening in our surroundings,” they pointed out.

Further, it was stressed that when the Government had not declared a lockdown in any area, it was unfair by some of the small time organisations to declare some tourist zones as closed until further notice.

They also noted that there were about 50 guests from various countries and they had been moved to some beachfront properties as many of the foreign tourists were leaving the country on Sunday and Monday.

“Most of the guests are cutting short their itineraries and going back to their homeland by Sunday or Monday. Thereby, we urge the public to remain calm and be more reasonable to the tourists who are here in the country at the moment,” they said.

The hoteliers stressed that villagers should not forget the good times they enjoyed when tourism was thriving. With no guests at these outlets at present, these properties have send their staff on paid leave for the time-being.