By Rathindra Kuruwita

It is claimed in some quarters that Sri Lanka attracts only low-end tourists, but there is a high occupancy at the 600 boutique hotels in the country, says Chalaka Gajabahu, Chairman of Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Board (SLTPB).

“A room in one of these is over 250 dollars. The occupancy of these is also over 70 percent. We are also giving free visas for seven main source markets. Maldives also get about the same number of tourists as us, but on average a tourist that arrives there spends over 600 dollars a day. An average tourist that comes here spends between 160 and 180 dollars a day,” Gajabahu said adding that in 2018, Sri Lanka had earned over 4.5 billion U.S. dollars from tourism.

Although all countries faced the COVID-19 pandemic, Sri Lanka’s main competitors did not face an economic crisis. The economic crisis in 2022 dented Sri Lanka’s international image, he said.

Sri Lanka has traditionally focused on its nature and culture to attract tourists, Gajabahu added.

“We are all in one capsule minus the snow, that’s how we should think about ourselves. We have about 140 shipwrecks. We are planning to introduce balloons over national parks. This is ideal for the high-end market.”

Gajabahu said they have invited over 200 social media influencers and they are due to arrive in the country to promote tourism. They are also planning a 10-year promotional campaign to promote tourism, he said.

Meanwhile, Udana Wickramasinghe, Director – Research and International Relations of Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) said over 1.26 million tourists have arrived in Sri Lanka by 27 November. This is about a 79 percent increase compared to 2022.

“Our target for 2023 is 1.5 million tourists. However, in 2024 we can attract 2.3 million tourists. I am confident of this. From the data we have, most of our hotels will have an occupancy of at least 80 percent, from December 2023 to March 2024. The trend is good. By 2030, we can attract five million tourists a year,” he said.

Commenting on claims that tourists that arrive in Sri Lanka are spending less dollars compared to pre pandemic years, Wickramasinghe said this is due to the depreciation of the rupee.

“The purchasing power of tourists has grown. They can spend less dollars in Sri Lanka now.”

Wickramasinghe said a large number of individuals, employed in the tourism sector, left the industry following the collapse of tourism in the past few years. SLTDA is also conducting a tourism sector workforce study to identify if these people are returning to the industry, he said.