According to provisional data released by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA), Sri Lanka’s tourism sector showed strong growth in the first quarter of 2025, with international tourist arrivals exceeding the 200,000 mark each month.
March registered 229,298 arrivals, a 9.62 percent year-on-year increase. This positive trend followed January’s arrivals of 252,761 and February’s 240,217.
The cumulative total for the first quarter was 722,276, reflecting a growth of 13.6 percent compared to 635,766 recorded in the corresponding period of the previous year.
The average daily arrivals in March were 7,396 and the weekly average was approximately 57,300, indicating a steady flow of tourists to the island.
India continued its dominance as the leading source market, contributing 17.1 percent of the total arrivals. The Russian Federation followed with 12.7 percent and the United Kingdom came in third with 9.8 percent. Other major markets included Germany (7.8 percent), France (6.7 percent), China (4.8 percent) and Australia (3.9 percent).
Sri Lanka has set ambitious targets for 2025 to attract three million tourists and generate US$5 billion in tourism revenue.
