Dramatic increase in tourist arrivals

Sandasen Marasinghe and Irangika Range

Culture and Arts Minister T B Ekanayake yesterday stated in Parliament that tourist arrivals in the areas within the cultural triangle had dramatically increased during year 2010, compared to previous years, adding that the income earned from the historic sites within the cultural triangle within 2010 had been Rs 764.6 million.

He added that the income from those places in 2005 had been Rs 284.7 million.

Minister Ekanayake was responding to a question raised by UNP MP Ravi Karunanayake. He said that the tourists included local and foreign. He said that 110,443, 138,232, 104,583, 112,190, and 109,404 tourists had visited these areas respectively during the years 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009.

With the elimination of terrorism, these areas had been visited by 788,887 tourists in the year 2010.