Tourist arrivals up

Irangika RANGE

Tourist arrivals in Sri Lanka from January to June 2010 have increased by 50 percent compared to the corresponding period last year.

A Spokesman from the Economic Development Ministry said that 233,922 tourists visited Sri Lanka during last six months.

The removal of travel advisories encouraged visitors even during the off-season.

The ending of the 30-year terrorist war and political stability has also resulted in an immediate increase in the number of tourists visiting the island.

Referring to figures in 2009, Indian tourists took the top slot with 83,634 visiting Sri Lanka, Tourists numbers from the United Kingdom were (81,594), Maldives (31,916), Germany (29,654), Australia (23,239), France(15,886), USA (14,241) and Russia (11,834).