Nepal likely to host more Sri Lankan tourists soon

By A Staff Reporter, Kathmandu, Nov. 28: As the economic situation of Sri Lanka is gradually coming back to normal, Nepal may receive more travellers from that country in the days ahead. It has become easier for these two South Asian nations to promote bilateral tourism and trade, thanks to the operation of direct scheduled flights between Colombo and Kathmandu by the SriLankan Airlines.

Currently, the national carrier of Sri Lanka is operating five flights a week to Kathmandu. And the airline is planning to start daily flights soon with demand growing steadily. It takes 3 hours and 20 minutes for a flight to arrive in Kathmandu from Colombo.

“Since the seat occupancy is quite encouraging, we are in the process of increasing flight frequencies,” said Deepak Mainali, Sales Manager of Zenith Travels (P) Limited which represents the SriLankan Airlines in Nepal.

Nepalis travelling to and from long-haul destinations like Australia, Japan, South Korea, and the Maldives are using this airline. “A lot of Nepali travellers are interested in experiencing Sri Lanka. With a variety of tourism products ranging from wildlife, sea beaches, and historical places to cultural heritage sites, Sri Lanka is an affordable destination for Nepali visitors,” said Mainali.

He further said that many Sri Lankans have been keen to visit Nepal to explore the exotic mountains, green valleys and other attractions.  Lumbini and other Buddhist pilgrimage sites in Nepal are what attract them more. In 2018, Nepal welcomed a total of 69,640 Sri Lankan tourists.

In the absence of direct air connectivity between Nepal and Sri Lanka, Sri Lankans in the past used to visit Lumbini via India. But with the availability of direct flights, they now come to Kathmandu. He said that Nepal is also a reasonable destination for potential Sri Lankan tourists.  

Branded as ‘The Pearl of the Orient’, Sri Lanka hosts a large number of international tourists each year. In 2018, the island nation received some 2.52 million foreign travellers.  The country is now moving forward with its economy recovering gradually.

“As travel advisories have been lifted, Sri Lanka’s tourism is now on a revival path. Many tourists have started coming back to experience the wonders the nation has to offer,” he said.

In September this year, Sri Lanka lured a total of 29,802 international tourists while the number increased to 42,026 in October.

Meanwhile, as an effort to help revive Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, SriLankan Airlines organised ‘Pearl of the Orient’ event in Sigiriya, a popular tourist destination, from November 16-21 this year. According to the airline, as many as 177 participants from its 68 stations from across the world attended that global sales conference.

 “The event was fruitful as the participants had an opportunity to take stock of the situation of Sri Lanka by visiting different tourist destinations there. We found everything normal there,” he said.    

The participants also had interactions with the airline’s management and their counterparts from global network.