Sri Lanka tourism looking good
Travel advisories are now being relaxed one by one but the tourism industry is still concerned regarding the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) that has been raised by a number of other states.
UK, Switzerland and Norway have followed France in relaxing the travel advisories.
The UK issued a travel advisory on July 22 that advised “against all but essential travel to Sri Lanka due to the impact of the current economic crisis”. On Friday this advisory was lifted.
Tourism Minister Harin Fernando is said to have held discussions with the respective foreign missions in Colombo to convince them to relax the travel advisories imposed by these countries.
In fact, all the industry associations are also said to be working towards attracting holidaymakers from the European markets in a bid to get a “decent winter”, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) Chairman Chalaka Gajabahu told the Business Times.
However, some industry persons pointed out that the PTA in force will force tour operators in key markets to remain reluctant to promote the destination.
The UK had also raised concerns over the PTA stating that it is seen as “inconsistent” with respect for human rights and urged authorities to stand by their commitments to stop its use.
In the meantime, the Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekara has assured the tourism authorities of the adequate availability of jet fuel.
Airlines however, were uncertain as to how this would be distributed and believed a quota system might be brought into place to ensure that all airlines continue to receive the needed refueling in Colombo.
But during the meeting with airlines’ representatives and the Tourism Development Authority it was highlighted that jet fuel will be made available commencing this week. Of late airlines have had to fly out to India to obtain jet fuel from its airports in Trivandrum, Chennai and Kochi. Airlines were also compelled to limit the number of flights they operated to Sri Lanka.
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