Tourist arrivals in first seven months of 2023 outpace 2022 full-year numbers

• Sri Lanka welcomes an impressive 748,377 tourists from January 1st to July 27th, 2023, exceeding the 2022 total of 719,978
• July sees over 120,000 tourist arrivals, surpassing 100,000 arrivals for the sixth time in the first seven months of the year
• India remains the top source market, contributing 17% of total arrivals with 20,770 tourists
• China emerges as one of the top three markets, making up 7% of total arrivals in July with 8,446 tourists 

Provisional data from the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) reveals that tourist arrivals in the first seven months of 2023 have already exceeded the total tourist arrivals recorded for the entire year of 2022.

Within the 1 January to 27 July period, Sri Lanka welcomed 4 percent more tourists than the whole 12 months in the previous year.

The tourist arrivals from 1st January to 27th July 2023 reached an impressive 748,377 surpassing the total tourist arrivals of 719,978 recorded from 1st January to 31st December 2022.

Further, Sri Lanka welcomed over 120,000 tourist for the first 27 days of July, surpassing the 100,000 arrival milestone for the sixth time in the first seven months of the year. SLTDA data showed that from 1 to 27 July, a total of 123,508 international visitors entered the country. The daily arrival average for July 1-27 period was 4,574, whereas the weekly arrival average was about 30,877.

In terms of source markets, India remained the top tourist traffic generator for Sri Lanka during the period.

The neighbouring giant contributed 17 percent of the total tourist arrivals bringing in 20,770 tourists. The second largest contributor was the United Kingdom which accounted for 12 percent of the total tourist arrivals. The UK brought in 15, 126 visitors to Sri Lanka. In third place was China. Following the post-pandemic reopening of its borders for travel, China has emerged as one of the top three markets for Sri Lanka’s tourism industry. In the month of July, China accounted for 7 percent of the total tourist arrivals, with a notable influx of 8,446 tourists.

While Germany holds the fourth position, the Russian Federation, which was Sri Lanka’s biggest tourist traffic generator since the island nation opened its borders, is observed to be slipping from its previous ranks. In July, Russia accounted for 5 percent of the total tourist traffic.

Other notable markets included France, Maldives, Netherlands, Canada, and Australia.

Sri Lanka has a target of attracting at least 137, 594 tourists for July. Within the first 27 days of the month, 89 percent of the target has been realised.