Sri Lanka trade up in arms over new tourism act – Is tourism headed for better or for worse?

Since the war of 30 years ended, the tourism industry in Sri Lanka has been picking up really well. It fell once again with the Easter tragedy that took place in 2019. Just as things were picking up once more, the pandemic hit the world and once again the tourism sector was on a downward slope. Now, Sri Lanka is trying its best to lift the industry to what it was once before.

While the best hotels in Sri Lanka by popular chains like Aitken Spence Hotels are making arrangements to receive guests once again, the events taking place on a strategic level doesn’t seem to be stable. The government is proposing a new structural change in how to handle the tourism industry without prior consultation from all parties involved. Although the government insists that this is the way to stabilise the industry, the various sectors are not in agreement.