Sri Lanka Tourism under the aegis of the Minister of Tourism and Lands Harin Fernando, showcased the rich diversity and future of sustainable tourism to the Middle East trade, media and consumers at the 30th edition of the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai.
“The destination has overcome numerous challenges over the past year and we are happy to say that we have bounced back yet again to be stronger and safer than before. Sri Lanka warmly welcomes the discerning traveler to experience the myriad of products and services our beautiful island has to offer” said the Minister.
Speaking at a media briefing at the event, the Minister together with officials from Sri Lanka Tourism, Sri Lankan airlines, the Sri Lankan Ambassador to the UAE and representatives from the Hotels Association and Inbound Agents Association reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen air connectivity to facilitate the growth of both the leisure and MICE market from the region.
Sri Lanka has surpassed the arrivals trajectories for the first quarter of 2023 and are looking to welcome over 1.5 million tourists by the end of the year.
Areas such as wellness, nature and adventure tourism has taken center stage in the recent past with numerous accolades and prominent international media publicity coupled with world renowned adventure sporting events selecting Sri Lanka to host annual events which have garnered tremendous publicity and generated the much-needed awareness that Sri Lanka is back in business
“The question the industry is facing now is should we chase numbers or work on a more sustainable module such as ‘quality over quantity” said the Minister. This has been an area of debate as Sri Lanka has traditionally been known for wanting to increase arrivals and highlight growth in terms of visitor numbers. However, there is a need to re-position the destination and attract the higher spending traveler as the country has both the products and services necessary to cater to the luxury end of the market. The 30th edition of the Arabian Travel Market has seen a 27% rise in exhibitor participation in comparison to last year and is confident that the anticipated 34,000 attendees with over 2,000 exhibitors from 150 nations will be at pre-pandemic figures.