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The Ministry of Tourism announced that Sri Lanka is ready to welcome its two millionth international visitor of the year today (December 26).
Deputy Tourism Minister, Professor Ruwan Ranasinghe, shared that the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) has arranged a special ceremony at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in Katunayake this morning to celebrate this milestone.
As of December 22, a total of 1,966,256 overseas visitors have arrived in Sri Lanka since the start of the year.
During December alone, 161,383 tourists entered the country, with the majority, 35,131, traveling from India. Additionally, 22,637 visitors were from Russia, 12,822 from the United Kingdom, 9,998 from Germany, and 8,646 from Australia.
According to the Tourism Development Board, the highest number of visitors this year (2024) came from India, with 399,224 arrivals. Russia followed with 189,289 tourists, while the UK contributed 172,404 visitors. Germany accounted for 131,379, China for 120,268, and France for 86,440 arrivals so far.
Professor Ranasinghe also mentioned that the total number of tourists visiting Sri Lanka by the end of 2024 is anticipated to reach approximately 2.1 million.
