800,000th tourist to arrive today

Sri Lanka will welcome its 800,000th tourist today, getting a step closer to the new target of 850,000 arrivals by end 2011.

The country’s tourism industry has grown in leaps and bounds this year, surpassing the original target arrival for 2011 of 750,000 in November.

It is hoped that December, known as the peak month, will bring in close to 91,542 to achieve the new target number. In December 2010, 84,624 tourists came in to the country, the highest monthly arrival figure recorded for the year.

In the same period in 2010 (by 16 December) the country welcomed the 600,000th tourist for the first time in Sri Lanka. The year ended with 654,474 tourists in 2010, a number that surpassed the target for the year of 600,000. Last year the industry grew at 46%.

Central Bank reports show that the income generated by the industry has risen by 48% in 2011, compared to 2010. Income per tourist on a daily basis is also said to have increased from US$ 88 to US$ 97.

Central Bank data shows that tourism revenue has risen 48.1% in the first nine months of the year, in comparison to 2010, to US$ 580.1 million. The Hotel and Travel Index on the Colombo Stock Exchange has risen nearly fourfold since the end of war.

With the increasing tourist arrivals in the country, the hotel industry has experienced a 45% rise in city hotel revenues along with a 10% boost in average occupancy.

The industry’s overall occupancy rate has increased by 25%.