Tourist arrivals top 1.3 m, but July set to miss monthly goal

Monday, 28 July 2025 04:49 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

YTD arrivals up 4% YoY, but to meet 3 m year-end target, over 1.68 m tourists needed averaging 281,000 monthly
July arrivals lag behind projections, with 145,188 tourists in first 23 days vs. 277,195 visitor target
India leads as top source market with 260,780 YTD visitors followed by UK and Russia; Netherlands showing strong July numbers

Sri Lanka’s tourism industry has crossed the 1.3 million mark in arrivals for 2025, reflecting a steady year-on-year (YoY) growth, but the latest data point to the country falling short of its monthly target for July.

Despite a seasonal boost from key cultural events like the Kandy Esala Perahera, industry data shows that current arrival rates are not enough to meet projections, raising concerns about the pace needed to hit the ambitious 3 million visitor target set for the year.

As per the latest data released by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA), during the first 23 days of July, a total of 145,188 tourists visited the country, pushing the year-to-date (YTD) figure to 1,313,232 arrivals, a 4% YoY increase.

Average daily arrivals also stood at 6,313, up from 6,084 visitors in the same period last year.

However, with an ambitious target of 3 million arrivals and $ 5 billion in revenue set for the year, the country must attract over 1.67 million (1,686,768) tourists or nearly 56.2% of the full-year goal over the remaining months of 2025.

The SLTDA projects 277,195 arrivals for the month of July, but only 145,188 visitors were welcomed in the first 23 days and the country now needs to draw in an additional 132,007 travellers over the remaining eight days of the month—an average of 16,501 arrivals per day—which is a steep challenge even with the Kandy Esala Perahera, which is set to take the streets from Wednesday (30).

India continues to be the top source market, contributing 27,786 visitors during the first 23 days of July and 260,780 YTD. The UK follows with 16,750 in July and 124,652 YTD. The Netherlands sent 10,809 tourists in July, while Russia remains the third strongest performer with 114,644 visitors sent so far this year.

Despite the overall positive YTD growth so far, analysts warn that current trends are insufficient to meet annual targets. The industry requires an average of around 9,167 tourists per day or 281,000 arrivals per month for the rest of the year to reach the 3 million mark, a rate well above what’s been achieved so far in 2025. The 252,761 tourists in January remain the highest monthly arrivals so far in 2025.

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