Stakeholders welcome British move to relax advisory

Sanjeevi Jayasuriya

Stakeholders in the tourism industry welcome the move to relax the travel advisory by the British Government. The UK Government relaxed restrictions on travel for British visitors to Sri Lanka. “We no longer discourage British travellers from visiting any part of the Eastern Province or Jaffna district,” it said.

A marked increase in tourists after the end of terrorism.

“This is a welcome sign. Tourists were travelling in the East even before the relaxing of the travel advice and this is a boost for the industry. However, the product is not in place to attract tourists and we need to address this issue immediately, Hoteliers Association of Sri Lanka President Srilal Miththapala told Daily News Business.

Foreign tourists need proper places of stay and there are no good hotels in the East.

This is a drawback to accommodate the expected growth in tourist arrivals, he said.

Government support is necessary for small-scale hotel operators in the Eastern Province to upgrade hotel facilities as building new properties would take longer time.

They should be given attractive incentives to encourage upgrading in a short period. The BOI needs to provide better facilities for investors to set up hotels to expand room capacity, he said.

“There is lot of enthusiasm among tour operators to increase the number of tourists to Sri Lanka. With the relaxing of travel advice related to East, we would expect more British tourists to visit the province, he said.

Tour Guides Association Chairman Joe Livera said this is a good move though coming later than expected.

This indicates that Sri Lanka is safe for travellers.

The positive impact and the benefit will be felt in the next summer and winter seasons.

The tourism industry is optimistic of the move and positive about the outcome for 2010.

This will not only have a positive effect on British tourists, but also tourists from other countries. It would result in an overall increase in tourist arrivals. We will be able to reach the targets set by the Government, he said.

Travel Agents Association President V. Mahadevan said it is a productive move.

This will encourage Sri Lankans residing in the UK to come to Sri Lanka.

“There would be an influx of tourists in time to come as tourist traffic will boom in the long run.

It is a favourable move and the country could prosper with the growth of the tourist industry,” he said.