Global tourism was one of the sectors worst affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, as country after country shut their borders to all travellers, including their own citizens.
Sri Lanka, which was reeling from the aftermath of the Easter terror attacks of April 2019, was gaining some positive tourist arrival figures when the pandemic hit in March 2020. The subsequent closure of our borders virtually decimated the tourism industry, affecting almost one million persons who were directly or indirectly employed in the industry.
Just when Sri Lanka opened its borders following a successful global and local Covid vaccination campaign and tourists started trickling in, an economic crisis descended on the country, with dire shortages of essential items, LP Gas and fuel and daily power cuts. This led to massive protests against the then administration and the rest, as they say, is history.
That socio-political upheaval led to the swearing-in of a new President, who is no stranger to calming turbulent political waters. The administration led by President Ranil Wickremesinghe has since taken many steps to bring both social and political stability.
The queues are gone for the most part and so are the protests, though some trade unions and political parties still strive to create unrest to meet their own political objectives. However, there seems to be no inclination on the part of ordinary people to be part of these demonstrations, which can only muddy the waters further.
One dire consequence of the economic crisis and the resultant protests was that many Western countries, which form the bedrock of our inbound tourism market, published adverse travel advisories warning against travel to Sri Lanka. They cited a host of factors from the lack of fuel to the possibility of getting caught up in Police action against the protesters. Many potential tourists cancelled their bookings as a result.
Mercifully, Sri Lanka had controlled Covid to a great extent, so this was the only factor holding the tourists back, apart from the fact that some airlines had either withdrawn or curtailed their services to Colombo citing a lack of refueling facilities in Colombo and higher insurance costs.
However, the dynamic Tourism Minister Harin Fernando, State Minister Diana Gamage and the new team at the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) have been working overtime to rectify this situation. They have successfully lobbied the Western Governments to lift their adverse travel advisories, which has boosted the confidence of would-be travellers.
In this context, it is heartening to note that over 81,000 tourists have arrived in Sri Lanka this month alone – and the month is not even over yet. This is a good omen for our tourism industry, which is just starting to look up from almost three years of gloom and doom.
Most, if not all, hotels are back in business and some have recruited additional staff to meet the anticipated demand over the Winter season. There are also new attractions such as the Lotus Tower to entice tourists. The Government has also introduced a Tourist Fuel Pass (TFP) system which will ensure an adequate supply of fuel to all tourist vehicles.
But the best news is that many airlines that withdrew from Sri Lanka in the face of recent troubles will soon be flying again to the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA). Among them are major European carriers Air France, KLM (Royal Dutch Airlines), Edelweiss (the leisure carrier of Swiss Airlines), Azur Air (Russian Charter Airline) and Russia’s Aeroflot, which is already flying in starting from last month.
Israel’s El Al has expressed an interest in flying between Colombo and Tel Aviv and the low-cost European carrier Wizz Air too is exploring the possibility of flying to Colombo (CMB) from its secondary hub in Dubai, UAE. The airlines that already call at the BIA have promised to increase their frequencies now that the jet fuel issue has been resolved.
The aviation authorities should invite more Indian, Maldivian and regional airlines to start flights to the Jaffna International Airport at Palaly (JAF) and the Colombo International Airport at Ratmalana (RML), now almost exclusively used by corporate and private jets. At least one airline is said to be interested in flying to the Mattala International Airport (HRI), which could be used to augment tourism to the Southern region.
Minister Fernando and the SLTDA are also working to woo football bans who will be arriving in Qatar for the FIFA World Cup to come to Sri Lanka to spend a few days in between their preferred matches. Both SriLankan Airlines and Qatar Airways have reportedly agreed to increase the number of flights operated between Doha and Colombo to facilitate such travellers.
We cannot predict how successful this effort will be, given that nearby countries such as the UAE (just one hour’s flying time) are also marketing their attractions to lure the World Cup fans. But one cannot fault Minister Fernando for thinking outside the box – this is precisely the kind of thinking that Sri Lanka Tourism needs right now, in the face of intense competition from all other countries in our region.
In this regard, we have to focus on what is unique to Sri Lanka. Indeed, no other country of its size can match the sheer diversity of attractions (both cultural and natural with eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites), the different climatic patterns, the succulent food and above all, the smiles of its people despite all the hardships they face.
Even the humblest of homes will welcome a tourist with open arms and give him or her a warm cup of tea. Hospitality is our inborn specialty, and we should capitalise on it at this crucial juncture.