Sri Lanka’s tourism revival is on track to reach greater heights.
From less than 200,000 annual inbound travellers at the height of the pandemic in 2021, Sri Lanka welcomed more than two million visitors last year – from slightly less than 1.5 million in 2023, marking a spike of 38 percent year-on-year.
While the final tally of 2.05 million fell short of the targeted 2.3 million arrivals, the authorities have set ambitious goals of a record three million visitors for this year and five million in 2026.
Volumes aside, the island raked in more than US$ 3.1 billion from tourism earnings last year, which represents a noteworthy 53 percent increase in forex inflows from foreign travellers. Back in 2021, the annual revenue from tourism stood at a measly 506 million dollars.
Sri Lanka Tourism’s revenue target for this and the next year (US$ 8.5 billion each year) would be nearly twice as high as its record of 4.3 billion dollars back in 2018.
