Sri Lanka’s tourism industry picking up pace with marked increase in tourist arrivals
Chairman of Sri Lanka Tourism Promotions Bureau (SLTPB), Kishu Gomes has reportedly noted the recovery of Sri Lanka’s tourism business following the Easter Sunday attacks in April, with a marked increase in arrivals which had plunged after the April suicide bombings of churches and hotels.
“The recovery is very good,” Gomes has been quoted as saying. “In the last 5 – 10 days we have exceed 4,500 tourist arrivals a day on average.”
He has told the media in a news conference recently that the reason for the increase in tourist arrivals to the country was due to the improved security and efforts to promote the island as a tourist destination.
The news briefing was organized to announce the hosting of a global forum of an association of financial market professionals in Sri Lanka.
The ACI Financial Markets Association World Congress hosted by Sri Lanka Forex Association is to be held from the 3rd to 5th October in Colombo.
Sri Lanka is currently in the ‘off-season’ period for tourism which peaks in the winter months.
“It is just a matter of time before we fully recover – we have plans in place to make that happens, Over the next 3-4 months we should be at normal levels. We are doing more and more work to increase the rate of arrivals,” Gomes has further stated.
“From the industry we hear bookings are increasing. Other countries hit by terrorism took on average 13 months to fully recover. Sri Lanka will not take that long,” he has added.
OSL take:
Sri Lanka’s tourism sector is already showing signs of a total recovery from the setback suffered in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday attacks in April within a few months. Sri Lanka continues to maintain the top slot of travel destination lists of several key global travel publications. Tourist arrivals to the country are on a growth path now. New investments to the tourism industry have already started flowing in. Many international events/conferences scheduled to be held in the country in the next few months with several foreign cricket teams also tipped to tour the country. Business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s tourism sector continues to expand as a result.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/29072019/Z_2 |