Sri Lanka’s tourism industry is bracing for challenges, following a series of travel advisories issued by several key markets, including the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Russia, Canada and New Zealand.

These advisories, prompted by the potential terrorist threats, have sparked fears that the sector, still recovering from the past disruptions, could face a significant setback just as the peak tourist season approaches.

“Any negative publicity will affect tourism more than any other industry. We don’t yet know the full impact but our main concern is how this will influence the future bookings,” Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators (SLITO) President Nalin Jayasundera told Mirror Business.

Last year, several local nationals from Weligama, Mirissa and Arugam Bay had been voicing concerns over Israeli nationals settling in those areas, overstaying their visas and running unlawful businesses. In an on the ground investigation done by Daily Mirror, locals said that they were often threatened by these Israelis when questioned and these nationals also never allowed locals to enter their parties and business establishments.

Meanwhile, Israel’s national security council called on Israelis on Wednesday to immediately leave some tourist areas in southern Sri Lanka over the threat of a possible terrorist attack. The agency said the warning pertained to the area of Arugam Bay and beaches in the south and west of Sri Lanka, and stemmed from “current information about a terrorist threat focused on tourist areas and beaches”.

The Australian travel advisory states:

“There is an ongoing risk of terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka. Terrorists may target areas popular with foreigners and tourists, including regional and coastal towns (see ‘Safety’). The ongoing conflict in the Middle East could increase the threat of attacks against Israeli interests in other regions. The US Embassy in Colombo issued a security alert on 23 October, strongly urging US citizens to avoid the Arugam Bay area until further notice.

To enter Sri Lanka, you will need a visa in the form of an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA). You should obtain this before travelling, as there are limited facilities to acquire an ETA on arrival at Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport. Public demonstrations can occur throughout Sri Lanka and may become violent. Avoid areas affected by demonstrations, follow local authorities’ advice, and monitor the media for updates.”

New Zealand’s travel advisory states:

“We advise New Zealanders in Sri Lanka to avoid protests, demonstrations, political rallies and events, large crowds and queues. Comply with any instructions from local authorities, including curfews. Monitor local and international media, review personal security plans and stay aware of your surroundings. If you unexpectedly find yourself near a protest, demonstration, large crowd or violent clash, exercise caution and leave the area quickly. Demonstrations may disrupt local public services and transport.”

Canada issues travel advisory:

The Canadian government has issued a travel advisory urging travellers to exercise a high degree of caution in Sri Lanka due to demonstrations, the threat of terrorist attacks and crime, particularly in the Arugam Bay area.

Sri Lankan security forces have implemented enhanced security measures in the Arugam Bay area following reports of a potential threat targeting popular tourist locations, Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) Priyantha Weerasooriya said.

The U.S. Embassy in Sri Lanka issued a security alert on October 23, warning American citizens of the possible risk in Arugam Bay.

US warns of Credible Threat of Attack in Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka

The US Embassy in Colombo has issued a travel warning for American citizens, advising against travel to Arugam Bay in Sri Lanka due to a credible threat.

Sri Lanka is in talks with foreign embassies to remove travel advisories after warnings of attacks on Israeli tourists in Arugam Bay, a beach resort in the island’s East Coast, while further ensuring protection to tourists visiting the island, Minister Vijitha Herath said.

“We are in discussions (to remove travel advisories),” Minister Herath told reporters Thursday.

“What we should do is to take action to strengthen security. We have taken action, if required we will do more in the future.”

The US issued a warning for citizens not to travel to Arugam Bay, saying there was credible information of a possible attacks in the area, which was repeated by the British and some other embassies.

Israel asked citizens to leave Argugam Bay and several beach resorts and not to engage in activities that may show their nationality.

Sri Lanka has arrested three persons, all Sri Lankans, for questioning related to the alleged plan to stage attacks Israelis.

Authorities deployed police and special task force officers to Arugam Bay and other resort areas, and also sent intelligence agents to selected locations, Acting Police Chief Priyantha Weerasuriya has said. A hotline hot line for tourists, 1997 has been opened.

Minister Herath said it was the responsibility of the embassies concerned to ensure the security of their citizens which is why warnings are issued.

“What we want to tell the public and tourists is that they should not have any fears,” Minister Herath said.

“We have taken maximum steps to provide security to foreign tourists. Police has taken the required steps, the tri forces have taken steps. They can freely come to the country.”

“It is our view that the warnings can be removed in a few days.”

About 570 Israeli tourists were currently in the country and some were still arriving while others are completing their stay and leaving, officials said.

Sri Lanka received initial information early in October but there was a presumption that there could be attacks in a number of counties against Israelis even earlier he said.

The travel warning came just as the so-called winter peak season is starting.

Sri Lanka tourist sector is starting to recover from a visa crisis after a IVS-GBS and VFS Global was given a contract to process visa, where high fees were charged to go through a complex website.

Court has temporarily halted the process and 50 dollar visa are now available through a simple process after the new administration restored the old system.

The Ministry of Power and Energy has appointed a committee to evaluate various renewable energy projects recently approved in Sri Lanka.

Professor Udayanga Hemapala, the ministry’s Secretary, said that the committee will assess around 40 wind and solar power initiatives, including the Mannar Wind Power Project, with expected electricity generation ranging from 5 to 100 megawatts.

Professor Hemapala said that some agreements may not be in the country’s best interest, and certain lands earmarked for these projects might be better utilized for agriculture.

The committee will also analyze the cost per unit of electricity and the economic benefits of these projects. Members are tasked with submitting their findings within a month, after which the ministry will seek to implement the projects in the most advantageous manner for Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka has seen dramatic reversal in their views of the country’s direction following the September 21 presidential election, according to a poll by the Institute for Health Policy (IHP), an independent pollster.

The IHP said in a statement on Thursday October 24 that its Sri Lanka Opinion Tracker Survey (SLOTS) poll for September had shown that a net 43 percent of the public had thought the country was heading in the wrong direction. This reversed after the election, with a net 5 percent of Sri Lankans polled saying that the country was headed in the right direction in the last ten days of the month, the highest level since SLOTS started tracking this in April 2022.

​​Overall, during September, an average of 21 percent of adults thought the country was heading in the right direction versus 54 percent who thought the country was heading in the wrong direction, the institute said.

“In the period before elections on September 21, 16 percent thought the country was heading in the right direction, and this increased to 41 percent after the polls, whilst 59 percent thought the country was heading in the wrong direction before elections, falling to 36 percent after.

“This dramatic turnaround in opinion occurred immediately after the election on 21 September. SLOTS did not conduct interviews during 22-23 September, but the change in sentiment was clear and detectable immediately from 24 September when the survey resumed,” said IHP.

According to the institute, the improvement in the public’s views about the country’s direction was broad-based and across all demographics. The biggest improvements were seen in the poorest adults (+77 percent), and in younger adults (18-29 years +74 percent, 30–44 years +77 percent), Sinhala (+75 percent) and Muslim (+74 percent) respondents. The only demographic where net opinion on the country’s direction did not increase into positive territory was the richest third of Sri Lankans, in which a net 6 percent thought the country was heading in the wrong direction.

“The big change in views in Sri Lanka meant that Sri Lankans went from being amongst the pessimistic nations when thinking about the direction of the country to being the amongst the most positive after the elections. Before September 2024, when excluding ‘no opinion’ responses for comparability with other countries, over 90 percent of Sri Lankans believed the country was on the wrong track. In a global IPSOS poll of 29 countries1, an average of 61 percent of adults thought their country was heading in the wrong direction, according to September estimates. By comparison, 79 percent of Sri Lankans held this view before the election (during September 1–September 20), a figure only better than South Korea and Japan, but far behind other South Asian countries tracked. After the election, this percentage dropped to 32 percent (68 percent in the right direction) moving Sri Lanka into the top three countries with positive outlooks.”

The United Kingdom has updated its travel advice on Sri Lanka following the US travel warning on Arugam Bay.

In its update the UK Foreign Office published the travel warning issued by the US.

“The US Embassy received credible information warning of an attack targeting popular tourist locations in the Arugam Bay area. Due to the serious risk posed by this threat, the Embassy imposed a travel restriction on Embassy personnel for Arugam Bay effective immediately and until further notice. U.S. citizens are strongly urged to avoid the Arugam Bay area until further notice.”

US citizens have been advised to report all suspicious activity and emergencies to local authorities (119), always maintain vigilance and be aware of their surroundings, trust their gut, and if a situation doesn’t feel right, get out of it.

Americans have also been advised to always have some form of communication on them (i.e. cell phone) and monitor local media for news and updates.

Growing Israeli presence in the Southern and Eastern parts of Sri Lanka has put Sri Lanka in a spotlight with local intelligence agencies being informed of a possible threat from Islamic extremists several weeks ago, senior defense sources told the Daily Mirror yesterday.

Last year, several local nationals from Weligama, Mirissa and Arugam Bay had been voicing concerns over Israeli nationals settling in those areas, overstaying their visas and running unlawful businesses. In an on the ground investigation done by Daily Mirror, locals said that they were often threatened by these Israelis when questioned and these nationals also never allowed locals to enter their parties and business establishments.

The community just grew over time with no concrete measures taken by the authorities and due to the recent developments in the Middle East, the threat from Islamic extremism grew in the region.

As a result, several weeks ago, Sri Lanka’s intelligence was informed of a possible threat in the East and South which was frequented by Israeli nationals and westerners which prompted security to be beefed up in the area along with intelligence officers being stationed on ground. The elite STF officers had taken control of the security situation and continue to be stationed to date. It was learnt that STF had also kept bomb squads standby for any emergency.

Then, just before the Presidential Election, local intelligence received the second threat alert by foreign intelligence. But the heightened security remained in place and all measures were taken.

However, the matter took a turn for the worse when the US Embassy in Sri Lanka yesterday morning issued a travel advisory against its nationals from travelling to Arugam Bay until further notice.

In its travel advisory, the US Embassy said it had received credible information on a potential attack targeting popular tourist locations in the Arugam Bay area and as a precaution, the Embassy had imposed an immediate travel restriction on its personnel to Arugam Bay until further notice.

“U.S. citizens are strongly advised to avoid the area during this time. The Embassy encourages individuals to report any suspicious activity or emergencies to local authorities by calling 119,” the Embassy said.

It also recommended keeping communication devices, such as cell phones, handy and monitoring local media for updates.

Following this advisory, Australia, Russia, New Zealand and UK updated their advisories, according to the US statement. The Russian Embassy in Colombo urged its citizens to remain vigilant and avoid large crowds in the region.

Meanwhile, Israel’s national security council called on Israelis on Wednesday to immediately leave some tourist areas in southern Sri Lanka over the threat of a possible terrorist attack. The agency said the warning pertained to the area of Arugam Bay and beaches in the south and west of Sri Lanka, and stemmed from “current information about a terrorist threat focused on tourist areas and beaches”.

With the winter season being a peak tourism season in Sri Lanka, the industry did not take the news well. A leading hotelier told Daily Mirror that while these advisories were for a particular area, it would react as a blanket advisory for several tourist spots.

Soon after these international advisories, Police Spokesman DIG Nihal Thalduwa told the media that several reports had been received over the past few days regarding potential threats to Israeli tourists in the Arugam Bay area.

Thalduwa said that the Arugam Bay and Pottuvil areas had been popular among Israeli tourists, particularly due to surfing events. The Police Spokesman said that considering the potential threats, the Senior DIG of the Eastern Province had implemented preliminary measures to prevent any incidents. Sources said that the Police had taken security measures over the threats prior to the US embassy issuing the advisory.

“Police have set up roadblocks and conducted vehicle checks in the area over the past few days. Currently, special joint security measures are being enforced by the Police, Special Task Force (STF), and the tri-forces,” Thalduwa said.

The Daily Mirror learns that a building in Arugam Bay, which had been converted into a “Chabad House” by the Israeli nationals had also caused a stir in the area. A Chabad House is a place of worship for Israeli nationals.

SJB Candidate for the Matara District, Rehan Jayawickreme told the Daily Mirror that in recent weeks police had put up road blocks, protecting the areas where the Israeli businesses were located and questioned why the authorities were not questioning them over their unlawful stay in the country.

Jayawickreme said he had been alerting the authorities for years over the growing Israeli businesses but no action had been taken. “Due to these Israeli nationals unlawfully staying here, Sri Lanka will soon become a battleground like elsewhere,” Jayawickreme said.

Meanwhile, in anticipation of an influx of foreign tourists during the upcoming tourism season and considering the conflicts in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, Police are implementing a special security programme to ensure the safety of foreign tourists, in collaboration with the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Public Security.

The Police Tourism Division will be strengthened, with special instructions set to be issued by Acting Inspector General of Police Priyantha Weerasuriya to all police stations.

Tourists are encouraged to report any security concerns to the Sri Lanka Police hotline at 1997.

Police also urged hotel owners and tourism staff to take proactive measures to protect tourists and their belongings while maintaining heightened vigilance against potential threats.