Govt. confident travellers will still holiday amid US tariffs crisis
In the long term the Sri Lankan government believes upmarket travellers will keep the industry afloat should the US tariffs on countries worldwide make its impact.
Deputy Tourism Minister Prof. Ruwan Ranasinghe addressing the media at the Government Information Department stated that while they believe the US tariffs are unlikely to adversely impact the expected 3 million arrivals this year; however in the long term they need to assess and consider how long these revolutionary rates will persist.
With India being an emerging market, he noted that they hope to target the top end travellers and so they are planning not just on numbers but also more revenue.
“If we can enhance revenue” without concentrating simply on the numbers of arrivals it will help the industry. He noted that economically there will be an impact and as a result they need to focus on top market categories and reach the upmarket travellers.
Although the US tariffs will have an impact “we don’t believe it will have an impact at least not this year,” Prof. Ranasinghe said adding that “we believe the 3 million (arrivals) is possible.”
The Deputy Minister noted that during the off season they hope to attract more travellers and in this respect, they want to target West Asia, India and Australian markets through promotional campaigns.
Prof. Ranasinghe pointed out that there is a clear increase in investments with 2024 recording US$40 million in total and $25 million generated within the past three months.
Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) Chairman Buddhika Hewawasam told the media that plans are carried out to ensure they can generate 250,000 travellers per month and increase the average spend from the existing $171 to $200.
The 21 tourism zones will be increased to 42 and fresh rules and regulations to be established for these locations, he said.
The soft launch of the global promotion campaign is likely to take place this month after the Sinhala and Tamil New Year with the promotions itself expected to kick off by end April, Mr. Hewawasam said.
Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management (SLITHM) Chairman Dheera Kuttiarachchi said the existing passing out of students from the institute at 6000 is expected to increase to 11,000 by establishing a resource centre that will increase the number of colleges set up in different locations.
A Hotel and Resource Management Degree programme is being offered that is expected to commence from the first quarter of next year, he said.
The Deputy Minister also highlighted plans to establish a Council to include all tourism sector stakeholders although there is no time frame mentioned in this regard. In addition the National Tourism Commission is also on the cards.
Checks on foreigners operating tourism lodgings and regulating the Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) by registering them is being worked out, Prof. Ranasinghe said.
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