Saturday Jul 18, 2026
Saturday Jul 18, 2026
Saturday, 18 July 2026 03:17 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
India leads YTD arrivals with over 314,100 visitors
Sri Lanka has welcomed 9,122 tourists in the first15 days of July, a 3.04% decline from the 92,951 visitors recorded during the corresponding period in 2025.
The first 15 days of July generated a daily average of 6,008 arrivals, with the month traditionally regarded as one of the stronger periods for tourism due to school holidays in key markets and Sri Lanka’s calendar of cultural and religious events.
In the first week of July, the country saw 40,821 tourists, followed by 43,387 in the second week, and 5,914 on 15 July. The highest daily arrival 6,636 was recorded on 11 July 2026.
The latest inflows pushed cumulative tourist arrivals for 2026 to over 1.23 million, although year-to-date (YTD) arrivals remained 2% below the corresponding period last year.
India maintained its dominance as Sri Lanka’s largest source market, contributing 20,480 visitors during the first 15 days of July, accounting for 23% of total arrivals. The UK ranked second with 9,277 tourists (10%), followed by China with 5,494 visitors (6%), Australia with 5,487 arrivals (6%), and the Netherlands with 4,744 tourists (5%).
On a cumulative basis, India continued to lead all source markets with 314,163 visitors, representing 25% of all tourist arrivals recorded so far this year. The UK remained the second-largest source market with 117,844 arrivals (10%) and China ranked third contributing 81,665 tourists or 7% of total arrivals.
