The curious case of Sri Lanka Tourism and stilt fishermen down south
Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, which boomed post-pandemic, is now looking more like the stilt fishermen found on the shores of Koggala, sitting atop poles driven into the sands of chest deep waters. What is unique about these fishermen is that there is very little technology and money spent behind their endeavors.
The marketing approach by Sri Lanka Tourism to catch more tourists is no different to these stilt fishermen. Attend some tourism fairs, organise a caravan of road shows and promotional programs in the sub-continent and in some countries in Europe.
The thinking appears to be “why waste money and effort on any global marketing campaign. Let’s take a cue from stilt fishing where the equipment required to sustain a stilt fishing business is minimal: find a couple pieces of wood, buy some string, fashion a hook and you’re good to go, whilst hoping for the best.
The problem is that this style of fishing limits the amount of fish one can catch. Sitting the whole day may yield maybe three to five catches. It’s a slow process, and whatever is caught may need to be brought home to eat or preserve as soon as possible, lest it rots under the wilting sun…with the same story unfolding every day.
As an alternative to catching fish by sitting on a pole all day, some fisher folk might decide to go into even deeper waters by boat, maybe even just half a mile out, and catch with nets instead of bait attached to a hook. In order to use a boat and net, a fisherman has to employ a crew to operate the boat, cast and draw the net/s, whether that’s by paddling, manning the sails, or running an outboard engine – all of which can be expensive, And yet, That’s exactly what our neighbouring and other countries are doing by making such bold moves.
Set to grow to $3.5 trillion by 2027, the travel and tourism sector is in fine health. The destinations that will win outwill be the ones that approach this opportunity in a strategic manner and if Sri Lanka is serious about achieving real growth, it will have to commit proper funds to the process.
When Sri Lanka’s Tourism Minister was recently asked if the 2025 targets could be achieved, he reportedly replied “We are trying to reach that target. We don’t know whether we will succeed or not.” One cannot really figure out which target he referred to because the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority’s outlook for 2025, built upon ‘scenario-based budgeting,’ refers to a ‘Lower Scenario’ of 2.4 million arrivals, a ‘Conservative Scenario’ of 2.7 million, and an ‘Optimistic Scenario’ of 3 million.
Despite the current year-to-date visitor total surpassing the 2 million mark on 17th November 2025, Sri Lanka is tracking behind the pace required to meet these goals. To even reach the 2.4 million lower scenario targets, the island would need a significant surge in November and December.
Sri Lanka recorded its highest-ever tourist arrivals for the month of October this year by welcoming 165,193 visitors, surpassing the previous record of 153,123 in October 2018. And yet, despite that, October 2025’s revenue from tourism of US$ 186.1 million was way below the US$ 287.4 million earned in October 2018 revealing a widening disconnect between visitor growth and actual spending. Clearly, another example where, taking tourism from mass to class, which should have been done ten years ago, may never happen in the next ten years.
Consequently, the consistently inconsistent Tourism authorities are at it again: Under the 2026 Budget, the Government has now revised its long-term tourism revenue goal to $ 8 billion by 2030, down from the earlier projection of $ 10 billion from 10 million visitors by then.
Seriously, Sri Lanka needs to get serious about developing data sets that don’t just monitor tourism numbers but provide the benchmarks for effective forecasting as well.
Ilzaf Keefahs is a freelance writer who enjoys focusing on hospitality related matters that he is passionate about, and likes to share his views with hoteliers and customers alike. He delves into the heart of hospitality to figure out both customer service and consumer trends that impact the industry
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