Sri Lanka’s Minister of Tourism, Harin Fernando, is hopeful about extending visa-free travel for nationals from China, India, Indonesia, Russia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Japan beyond March 31, 2024. Initially introduced in October 2023 to boost tourism, the current initiative allows a 30-day visa-free stay with double entry options. Travellers need only an online Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) before visiting Sri Lanka.
During a discussion at the OTM travel show in Mumbai, Minister Fernando highlighted the tourism industry’s recovery, noting a 106% increase in January visitors compared to the previous year. In the first six days of February, arrivals reached 48,000. Top source markets for January include India, Russia, the UK, Germany, China, France, Poland, Australia, the US, and the Netherlands.
The minister emphasized Colombo’s international airports hosting 9,000 tourists daily, with flights operating at full capacity. The 2024 tourism target is set at 2.5 million international tourists, building on the close miss in 2023 when the country aimed for 1.5 million visitors but achieved around 1.439 million arrivals.
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