• Tourism Minister reveals plan to attract travellers for peak season in Dec.
• Focuses on tapping into new markets and India
• Confirms launch of promotions in five key Indian cities — Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi
• Plans to tap into the high-end Gujarat travel market, a first-time destination for SL
• Identifies India as a potential key market for SL tourism 

By Charumini de Silva

Tourism Minister Harin Fernando

Tourism Minister Harin Fernando yesterday said Sri Lanka is expecting close to one million tourists by the end of the year, whilst capitalising on new markets as well as on the neighbouring giant — India.

“As June recorded an 8.8% increase in arrivals, we hope there will be a steady influx of tourists by December. We are looking at tapping into new markets as well as into India, which continues to be the largest tourist market for Sri Lanka,” he told journalists yesterday.

Tourist arrivals in June increased by 8.8% to 32,865 from the lowest 30,207 in May despite the ongoing economic crisis. Arrivals in the first six months amounted to 411,377 (as against 17,000 in COVID-hit 1H of 2021), a welcome development for the triple-hit tourism industry but performance is still down by 50% compared to the same period in pre-COVID.

He said the Ministry together with the four institutions are working on a broader plan to attract tourists for the peak season in December. 

The Minister also said that they will soon commence the promotions in five key Indian cities which include; Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Delhi, whilst venturing into a first-time destination as well — Gujarat, noting that they will set up a promotion office in a first-time destination, Gujarat.

“There is a lot of potential in India. For the first time, we are going to set up a promotion office in Gujarat. It is a new destination for us, but they have three million people travelling each year and are considered to be high spenders as well. We hope to promote Sri Lanka on yoga, retreat, wellness, ayurveda, culture, religion, MICE and destination weddings,” he explained.

As per Sri Lanka Development Authority (SLTDA), India remains the top tourist source market for Sri Lanka YTD with cumulative number of arrivals at 68,601, followed by UK 49,453, Russia with 46,337, Germany 33,373, France 21,683, Australia 14,476, Ukraine 13,781, Canada 12,968, Poland 12,709 and US 11,626.

Minister Fernando said they are also promoting Sri Lanka among Indian corporate companies for MICE tourism opportunities. 

He also expressed confidence in expecting a large number of tourists from India, the UK and France to attend the Nallur Kovil celebrations next month.

Noting that Sri Lanka is unique in its own experiences, Minister Fernando stressed that there are multiple opportunities tourists can explore within short distances and beautiful weather conditions. 

Sri Lanka earned $ 681 million from tourism in the first five months as against $ 40 million a year ago.

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