By: Staff Writer
March 05, Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka is poised for an exhilarating tourism surge in 2024, with ambitious plans aiming for 2.3 million tourist arrivals, Tourism Ministry sources said.
Driving this surge is the plans of extension of visa exemption status for Indian travellers beyond March, a strategic move acknowledging India’s pivotal role as the primary tourism market for Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankan Minister of Tourism Haren Fernnado emphasized this significant development at the OTM 2024, underlining the indispensable contribution of Indian tourists in steering Sri Lanka’s tourism recovery
Sri Lanka aims to attract more visitors, particularly those who prefer last-minute trips and those who like to avoid the tedious visa application process.
Tourist arrivals in February have hit a post-COVID all-time high of 218,350 whilst pushing the cumulative figure to 426,603 setting a positive start for the year, he disclosed. .
Sri Lanka welcomed over 200,000 tourists for three consecutive months, marking a hat trick. February arrivals also set a new benchmark, beating the previous high of 210,352 recorded in December since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020.
The data reflects a sharp growth of 103% year-on-year (YoY), largely influenced by the winter season travel, enhanced connectivity and service from more airlines and growing traveller confidence following promotions.
Nevertheless, the performance in February is still 7.3% lower compared to the 235,618 in the benchmark year 2018. “As per Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA), earnings from the sector during the first two months estimated over $ 710 million.
It is a significant leapfrog from where the industry was post-COVID and other crises. I hope this momentum will continue and be a record-breaking 2024,” Tourism Minister Harin Fernando said.
In February, an average of 7,529 tourists arrived in the country daily, as against the 6,717 daily average in January 2024.
Notably, Sri Lanka has gained recognition as one of the desired destinations for last-minute trips by Indians, and according to Google Trends reports for India,
Sri Lanka ranks 4th among the top 10 most googled travel destinations by Indians. Additionally, FOX News has recently acknowledged it as one of the top 13 affordable destinations.
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