Sri Lanka celebrates sharp rise in UK visitors
UK visitor numbers to Sri Lanka were up 51% in July 2010 compared with July 2009, according to the latest figures.
The country’s tourist board says the change in FCO advice, lifting all travel restrictions and UNESCO’s decision to add an eighth Sri Lankan property to its list of World Heritage Sites are all helping to boost visitors.
After 30 years, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has lifted all travel restrictions to Sri Lanka, allowing UK tourists to explore the whole country.
The Tourism Promotion Bureau is keen to encourage visitors to the newly re-opened areas to the East of the country, with remote beaches such as Arugam Bay and Trincomalee, and a plethora of wildlife at Yala National Park.
By Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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