July tourist arrivals up 7.8%

Reuters: Tourist arrivals in July rose 7.8% from a year earlier, Government data showed on Tuesday.

The number of visitors has risen year-on-year in the past 39 months since a 25-year civil war ended in May 2009.

The Tourism Board expects over one million tourists in 2012, yielding revenue of more than $ 1 billion, up from last year’s record $ 830.3 million.

Revenue from tourism rose 24.3% to $ 459.9 million in the first half of 2012 from the same period last year.

Tourism is one of the main foreign exchange earners for Sri Lanka’s $ 59 billion economy, along with remittances from expatriate workers, garments and tea.