FINANCIAL CHRONICLE – According to data from the central bank, Sri Lanka’s tourism sector generated $223.7 million in foreign exchange revenue in March 2026, reflecting a significant 37% decline compared to the same month last year. This marks the first official tourism revenue report released by authorities following the onset of the U.S./Israel military actions in Iran, which began on February 28.
The tourism revenue for Sri Lanka has been on a downward trend since August of the previous year, attributed to a revised estimate of daily spending by tourists. Officials noted that this monthly revenue drop is the seventh occurrence in the last nine months, with previous declines noted in July and August, followed by a slight increase in September and October.
Tourism contributes nearly 3% to Sri Lanka’s economy, and in March, the revenue decline coincided with a 20% reduction in tourist arrivals, totaling 184,979 visitors compared to the previous year, despite it being the peak season for tourism.
The government of Sri Lanka has set an ambitious goal of welcoming 3 million visitors and achieving $4 billion in revenue by the end of 2026. Additionally, tourism earnings for the first quarter of this year fell by 15%, totaling $954 million when compared to the same period last year.
In 2025, the country recorded $3.22 billion in tourism revenue, marking a modest increase of 1.6% from $3.17 billion in 2024. The number of international visitors to Sri Lanka showed a robust increase of 15.1% in 2025, reaching a record high of 2,362,521, up from 2,053,465 the previous year.
At its peak in 2018, tourism accounted for nearly 5% of Sri Lanka’s economy, but the sector has faced numerous challenges since then, including the tragic Easter Sunday attacks in 2019, the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, and a subsequent severe economic crisis.
The figures for tourism earnings are derived from a survey conducted by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, which indicated that the average daily expenditure per tourist has decreased from $171 to $148 since August of last year.
As tourism revenues begin to flow in, there has been a gradual increase in Sri Lanka’s imports and merchandise trade deficit, as those employed in the tourism sector allocate their earnings for expenditures. (Colombo/April 18/2026)
