COLOMBO: Lonely Planet, the world’s leading travel guide, has named Sri Lanka as the best destination to travel to in 2019, delivering a resounding vote of confidence for the island nation’s resilient tourism industry.
Sri Lanka, who pushed Germany and Zimbabwe to second and third place respectively in Lonely Planet’s coveted guide featuring the world’s top destinations, has seen its travel and hospitality sectors make a remarkable recovery since the war ended in 2009.
Other countries in Lonely Planet’s list of top ten destinations for 2019 are Panama, Kyrgyzstan, Jordan, Indonesia, Belarus, Sao Tome and Principe and Belize.
That Sri Lanka was chosen for the top spot in the guidebook publisher’s annual Best in Travel awards is not only because of its diverse attractions but also due to better transport links, new hotels and a growing number of activities in new tourism hot spots.
In a statement, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, said: “Let us make this award, for us, a starting point to go to a higher level of tourism. We are restructuring ourselves to be an export economy, and in the export economy, tourism has received a principle place since it can be one of the fastest foreign exchange earners. Let us make it the starting point to double the revenue that we have from tourism.”
Senior officials and editors at Lonely Planet were unanimous in their selection of Sri Lanka as the world’s number one ‘must-visit’ destination.
“Already notable to intrepid travellers for its mix of religions and cultures, its timeless temples, its rich and accessible wildlife, its growing surf scene and its people who defy all odds by their welcome and friendliness after decades of civil conflict, this is a country revived,” says Lonely Planet author Ethan Gelber in the just published Best in Travel 2019 book.
Lonely Planet Vice President Andrew Hinshelwood told journalists in Colombo: “We feel it is a destination with lots of things happening. The buzz is making the country a great destination. We believe it is a destination that offers something for everyone, that appeals to all types of travellers.”
Best in Travel is Lonely Planet’s highly anticipated annual collection of the best travel destinations, trends, journeys and experiences to have in the year ahead. Over the past 14 years, Lonely Planet has set the travel agendas for the next 12 months with the annual release of Best in Travel.
“We have hundreds of travel experts on the ground contributing their experiences from almost every destination of the planet and travellers trust us to give accurate, fresh, entertaining and honest advice. We strive to put the traveller first and present an objective view on the destinations to make their own informed choices and travel responsibly,” Lonely Planet said.
Commenting on the choice of Sri Lanka as the top destination, Matt Philips, destination editor at Lonely Planet, said: “It’s changed so much, so quickly, and in a lot of ways that makes travel much easier. Sri Lanka is decidedly having its moment in the equatorial sun and change is coming swiftly. There’s more than ever for families, adrenaline junkies, eco-tourists, wellness seekers and foodies of all budgets.”
He also said travel products had hugely evolved in Sri Lanka, and now includes diverse opportunities beyond mere beach holidays, from eco-tourism and yoga retreats to visiting national parks to see elephants and leopards.
Joe Bindloss, Lonely Planet’s Destination Editor for Sri Lanka told HuffPost UK that the country is bouncing back friendlier and more accessible than ever.
“This fascinating island nation has always offered timeless temples, stunning sand and prolific wildlife, but now, with improved tourism infrastructure and transportation, even the north and east of the country are ripe for exploration, opening up areas that were long off-limits to travellers.
“You’ll find a country moving on from the troubles of the past and looking to the future .”
Among the top attractions and experiences the guide says the travelers cannot miss in Sri Lanka are the beautiful beaches, especially the untouched beaches in Tangalle, travel by train to Ella, ancient city of Anuradhapura, 300-strong elephant gathering at Minneriya National Park, City of Galle, Sigiriya and Sinharaja Forest Reserve.
Jaffna and much of north for the first time since 1990 – an area that was previously out of bounds for tourists, is now easily accessible, thanks to renovations made to the rail system The scenic rail routes in Sri Lanka are now widely thought to be some of the best in the world. Motorways have also been built as far south as Matara, and the number of domestic flight routes have also increased in recent years, too, as tourists can take flights from the capital Colombo, on the west coast, to Batticaloa, on the opposite of the island, in 45 minutes.
Tourism Development Minister John Amaratunga expressed confidence that Sri Lanka was on track to achieve 2.5 million tourist arrivals and generate $ 4.5 billion in revenue by the end of this year.
“Lonely Planet is an authority on travel and tourism news and this endorsement is a big win for Sri Lanka. It is great to see that the country is finally getting its due place on the global tourism map. We expect to see this publicity being converted to actual footfall in the coming winter season and the year beyond,” he stated.
This year, over 1.7 million tourists have visited Sri Lanka with the government targeting 2.5 million arrivals by the end of the year. This is in comparison to 2.1 million arrivals in 2017, a figure the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority hopes to double by 2020.
India, China and UK are the leading markets, accounting for the most number of arrivals.
