Will Sri Lanka tourism attract 2.5 million visitors in 2018?

1,582,835 tourists had visited Sri Lanka in the first eight months of this year ending August. It is a 12.5 % growth over last year when 1,406,854 tourists had visited the country during the same period. 200, 359 visitors in August 2018 was a 4.9% increase year-on-year and is the fifth time this year where Sri Lanka was able to cross the 200, 000 arrival mark for a single month. 

India again brought in the highest number of international guests generating 16% of Augusts’ full total traffic. China accounted for 13% of the month’s total arrivals whilst the UK contributed 12%.

The year-on-year growth for August in 2018 by the 1^st and 2^nd top countries in the ‘Top 10’ list is a mere 2.9 % and 0.2%, respectively. In fact total visitors from China this August was nearly identical to that in August 2017 - twelve months ago and that’s a worrying sign.Despite nearly 30 weekly flights between Colombo and key Chinese 1^st tier cities and participation at several Tourism fairs and road shows, very little or no progress seems to have been made to persuade more visitors from that country.

To achieve its goal of 2.5 million visitors this year, the balance four months (Sept – Dec) will need to see a total 917,165 actual arrivals. And that would require all four months to either individually cross the 200,000+ mark, or rack up a  whopping 29% year-on-year increase in arrivals over that received in the same four-month period last year.

Our prediction for 2018: circa 2.4 million visitors.

Compiled by in2ition

•  Share this page