Sri Lanka focuses on South Korea’s outbound market

Friday, 25 September 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

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South Korea, ranked as one of Asia’s economic tigers with a per capita GDP of around $ 23,000 which has made international travel possible for a larger number of people, is where Sri Lanka is focusing, said Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Chairman Dr. Rohantha Athukorala while addressing a 16-member South Korean Tour group at OZO hotel yesterday.

“I thank the 36 Sri Lankan Destination Marketing Companies ( DMCs) which came for the B2B sessions. Let’s make this market 50,000 visitors from the current 13,000,” he said.

“The record 14 million trips last year was equivalent to one in four of the population - at an outbound travel intensity of 26%. This is substantially higher than that of Japan (13%) but is rather low by world standards in relation to GDP per capita. But we in Sri Lanka must target the $ 250 traveller rather than just numbers,” said Athukorala.

International travel expenditure (excluding transport) fell from a peak of $22.0 billion in 2008 to just $ 15 billion in 2009, and has since recovered only partially to $ 20.1 billion. UNWTO ranked South Korea 14th in the world on this basis in 2007, but 17th in 2009, 26th in 2010, 22nd in 2011 and 21st in 2012.

The great majority of trips are to Asian destinations - the top 12 destinations are all Asian, with the exception of the US. Europe is still regarded by most people as a ‘once in a lifetime’ destination and attracts fewer than 1 million Koreans a year. However, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Turkey and the UK usually rank among the top 25 destinations and industry players believe the growth potential for island nations like Sri Lanka as an exotic destination is immense.