The official page for I Love Sri Lanka. Your experiences and feedback are appreciated.
* Sri Lanka is filled with romantic landscapes, governed by rising mountains, lush forests, ocean like tanks and gushing waterfalls, that it was considered the lost paradise by many a globe trotters, who fell upon the country. The golden beaches of the country had been praised for their picture postcard views
since eternity. The dusk and dawn and many human activities connected to these times of the day creates a vibrant picture along the coasts of Sri Lanka. The central highlands of the island are filled with pictures of stirring mountains carpeted with lush green tea gardens, roaring waterfalls mingling with the clouds and landscapes shimmering in sunlight and disappearing under the rising mist. Travelling towards the top of the country to the North Central Valley of the Kings, mountains covered with lush tropical forests disappears under the glare of the sun giving way to acres of light green carpets of paddy dotted with towering ancient white stupas and fed with oceans like reservoirs locally known as wewa. Giant statues of Lord Buddha rises above the forest line while ancient palaces stand abandoned to the forest, waiting for a master, who long departed from life. Travelling further north the landscape changes drastically, North of Sri Lanka is a world apart from the rest of country. Colorful Hindu temples replace the white pagodas while sari clad damsels roam the streets on bicycles. On the western coasts of the country is Colombo, a capital city of the island, which displays a rich colonial heritage. A potpourri of races, religions and cultures, Colombo parades the best and worst the country has to offer. **
------------------------------------------------------------
"Our target is 4.5 million tourist arrivals aimed by 2020
Sri Lanka targets 2.2 million tourist arrivals for 2016 and a total of 4.5 million by 2020. According to the Tourism Promotions Bureau, Sri Lanka failed to achieve the two million tourist arrivals target last year and future targets have been amended to realistic levels. There is even a possibility of adding 200,000 tourist arrivals to this year’s target if international trends continue. Sri Lanka will look to China and India for growth, while looking for niche sector growth from sports, adventure, Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) and cruise tourism. From the beginning of last year, the government had set different targets for 2020, including initial acceptance of the previous regime’s master plan, adjusting it later to 4.5 million arrivals, and revising it to 4.2 million arrivals at the end of last year.
