Sri Lanka received the highest monthly tourist arrivals of 5,040 in August
so far this year, amid relatively eased COVID-19-related restrictions globally
and locally, aggressive vaccination drive and growing consumer confidence. Sri Lanka received only
2,429 tourists in July and 1,497 tourists in June. The cumulative tourist
arrivals up to August amount to 23,377, down 95.2 percent over last year, when
over 500,000 tourists had visited the country from January to March 18, 2020,
before Sri Lanka closed its borders for travelers until December. According to the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority
(SLTDA), the largest source markets recorded for the month of August 2021 were
Canada, Germany and the UK, followed by Pakistan and India. Meanwhile, as regions, Europe became the largest source of
tourist traffic to Sri Lanka, with 48.1 percent of the total traffic received
in August 2021. Asia and the Pacific accounted for 31.8 percent of the total
traffic while the Americas accounted for 18.1 percent.