The Lonely Planet magazine, despite all the troubles Sri Lanka faced due to the attacks, has named Sri Lanka the best destination for tourists to visit, says Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

“At the beginning of the year, Lonely Planet magazine named Sri Lanka as the world’s best destination to visit. However, after the Easter Sunday bomb blasts, we thought that we had lost this position,” PM Wickremesinghe has said.

The prime minister reiterates that tourism has a promising future in Sri Lanka.

He urges everybody to get together to ensure that the industry thrives and enhances the country’s image in the eyes of the world.

The complete statement by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is as follows:

“At the beginning of the year, Lonely Planet magazine named Sri Lanka as the world’s best destination to visit. However, after the Easter Sunday bomb blasts, we thought that we had lost this position. Many tourists fled the country. But last week, Lonely Planet stated that despite all the troubles Sri Lanka faced due to the attacks, we still remain the best destination for tourists to visit, the best destination in the world. 

We must all feel proud as they said, “We came here and were greeted with a friendly hello by the people. Everyone was friendly and they welcomed us everywhere, we did not see any problems.” This is the view of the Lonely Planet magazine. Therefore, I must emphasize that the Government is taking steps to assist the tourism industry, and will announce further measures soon. I would like to thank all those in the tourism sector – big and small – who helped to keep the industry moving.

I must also thank the members of the security forces who helped us from April 21st, the day of the attacks when I first met them. They set about capturing those responsible, and all are now in custody. They were able to accomplish this mission within just two months. So, I must reiterate that tourism has a promising future in Sri Lanka. I urge everybody to get together to ensure that the industry thrives and enhances our image in the eyes of the world.”