April 2022's 62,980 arrivals halt Sri Lanka tourism's upward trajectory
After the island recorded over 100,000 arrivals in March this year, the first time it did after twenty four months, the number of arrivals in April 2022, dropped steeply to total 62,980. Conversely, the daily average arrivals of 3,600 in March dipped to just under an average 2,100 in April – bringing to a halt the upward arrivals trajectory since December 2021.
The Tourist arrivals fall by 41% in April in comparison to March, recorded the lowest inflow for the year so far, shattering industry hopes for a post-pandemic upturn.
Accumulatively, with April’s performance, year-to-date (YTD) tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka amounted to 348,314, mainly due to an uneventful and peaceful passage of time between January and March – igniting expectations of a quick rebound this year, with the total figure exceeding last year’s 194,500 - achieved during twelve months.
The downward trend has been attributed by the industry leaders to the government’s declaration earlier last month when the Government declared a state of emergency following the protest at the President’s residence, which thereafter drew the public to the streets, demanding the administration to step down amidst worsening economic conditions post-Independence.
In April, the UK topped the tourist traffic to Sri Lanka with 11,539, followed by India with 8,678, Germany with 6,088, France with 4,035 and Russia with 3,874. In addition, tourists were also received from Australia, Canada, US, Switzerland and Netherlands.
New research from Travel insurer World Nomads reveals that this year, more than 21 million Brits (40% of the total population) are looking to go on a holiday of a lifetime after two years of travel restrictions. Not many though would opt to travel to the island given the current scenario.
Fears by the industry that the arrivals numbers will further reduce may not be unfounded after several airlines indicated reductions to the Colombo operation, mainly due to political, economic and social upheavals exacerbated by a severe foreign exchange crisis that the country is currently facing.
Hospitality Sri Lanka
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