Sri Lanka tourist arrivals fall 10% in June, with the country welcoming 124,551 international visitors during the month, reversing the modest recovery recorded in May and highlighting continued challenges for the tourism sector.
Sri Lanka tourist arrivals fall 10% in June despite strong Indian visitor numbers
According to the latest figures released by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA), tourist arrivals in June 2026 declined 9.9 percent year-on-year from 138,241 visitors recorded in June 2025. The latest performance also remained below pre-pandemic levels, with arrivals 15.1 percent lower than the 146,828 visitors registered in June 2018.
The June downturn interrupted the sector’s uneven recovery path during the first half of 2026. While the year began on a positive note, sustained momentum proved difficult to maintain as global travel conditions and seasonal demand weighed on visitor numbers.
Cumulative arrivals for the first six months of 2026 reached 1,146,573, representing a slight decline from the 1,168,044 visitors recorded during the corresponding period of 2025.
The first quarter delivered encouraging results, with January recording 9.7 percent year-on-year growth and February expanding by 16.2 percent. However, those gains were offset by sharp double-digit declines in both March and April. Although May posted a temporary 9.65 percent recovery, the rebound failed to continue into June.
Weekly data released by the SLTDA showed that the final full week of June generated the strongest visitor inflows for the month. Between June 22 and June 28, Sri Lanka welcomed 32,519 tourists, outperforming the earlier weeks of the month.
The first week of June recorded 27,043 arrivals, while the second week attracted 27,423 visitors. Daily arrivals peaked toward the end of the month, with 5,421 tourists arriving on June 26 and another 5,016 on June 27, contributing to the stronger weekly performance.
Despite the monthly decline, Sri Lanka tourism continued to benefit from strong demand from India, which maintained its position as the country’s largest source market by a considerable margin.
India accounted for 43,423 arrivals during June, representing approximately 35 percent of total visitors. The United Kingdom remained the second-largest source market with 10,474 arrivals and an 8 percent market share.
Australia and China followed closely, each contributing more than 8,000 visitors and accounting for roughly 7 percent of total arrivals during the month.
The United States, France and Germany formed the next tier of source markets, with each country contributing around 3 percent of June’s total arrivals.
Looking at the broader picture for the first half of the year, India continued to dominate inbound tourism with 293,683 visitors between January and June.
The United Kingdom ranked second with 108,567 arrivals, while the Russian Federation secured third place overall with 77,349 visitors despite not featuring among the leading source markets during June alone.
China ranked fourth with 76,171 arrivals, followed by Germany with 69,758, completing the top five international source markets for the first six months of 2026.
The latest SLTDA data indicates that although Sri Lanka continues to attract strong visitor numbers from key regional markets, sustaining consistent growth remains a challenge. The decline recorded in June highlights the need for continued destination marketing, improved air connectivity and diversified tourism offerings to strengthen Sri Lanka tourism performance during the remainder of the year.
With the peak travel season approaching later in the year, industry stakeholders will be closely monitoring visitor trends to determine whether arrivals regain momentum and help offset the weaker performance recorded during the second quarter.