Sri Lanka managed to recover slightly from the effects of pandemic as it saw a remarkably high number of tourists in December 2021, with the majority of them from India. By Yagnoseni Das
Despite the island nation’s borders being shut for foreign travelers for several months due to the health crisis, 194,495 tourists arrived, with more than one-fourth of them coming from India, according to the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA), reports Odisha TV.
According to the SLTDA, India ranked first with 56,268 tourists, followed by Russia (16,268) and the United Kingdom (16,646), Germany (12,442), Ukraine (7,037), France (6,549), the United States (6,124), Kazakhstan (5,754), Canada (5,079), and China (2,417).
Following two COVID-19 waves, Sri Lanka’s tourism industry was further harmed by the pandemic’s third wave in April 2021.
However, as one of the world’s top tourist destinations, Sri Lanka gradually opened its doors to visitors, and a number of promotions were launched in response.
Exciting offer from SriLankan Airlines! Buy One Get One Free from #India to #SriLanka.
Offer Valid only for Indian nationals travelling on tourist visa.
Reserve your ticket today!
Please contact your nearest SriLankan Airlines Office or your travel agent to book your ticket. pic.twitter.com/g0o0ULQWxU
— SriLankan Airlines (@flysrilankan) August 28, 2021
SriLankan Airlines launched a ‘Buy One, Get One Free Ticket’ promotion for Indian tourists. Additionally, the airlines began several weekly flights to Chennai and Mumbai, as well as operations to Bengaluru, Madurai, Tiruchirappalli, Trivandrum, and Cochin.
The country opened its borders to fully vaccinated visitors in August 2021, and the mandatory on-arrival PCR tests were phased out the following month.
This news comes as a positive sign at a time when the entire world has been gripped by the fear of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. Tourism is among the industries that have suffered the most in the last two years, especially with international borders shut, and measures such as the ones by Sri Lanka have come as a breath of fresh air for the travel industry and its stakeholders, as well as tourists looking for more economically viable travel options.
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