Over 7,000 tourists have arrived in Sri Lanka so far this month, giving a boost to the country’s tourism industry which took a blow due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to official figures, 7,096 tourists arrived in Sri Lanka from 1-13 October.

Tourism minister Prasanna Ranatunga said if the present trend continues, October was likely to record the highest monthly arrivals for this year. The Tourism Ministry said that so far this year, September saw the highest tourist arrivals of 13,547. With the arrivals up to October 13 added, 45,413 tourists have arrived in the country since the re-opening of borders on January 21, the ministry said.

Ranatunga said that with the easing of travel restrictions, there was a growing interest from global travellers to visit the country. The majority of tourists who have arrived in Sri Lanka so far this year are from India, Kazakhstan, Germany, Ukraine, the United States, China, Canada, Britain, France and Russia.