Editing Economy of Sri Lanka (section)

=== Tourism ===
[[File:Unawatuna.jpg|thumb|right|225px|[[Unawatuna]] Beach]]
{{main|Tourism in Sri Lanka}}
[[Tourism]] is one of the main industries in [[Sri Lanka]]. Major tourist attractions are focused around the island's famous beaches located in the [[Southern Province, Sri Lanka|southern]] and the [[Eastern Province, Sri Lanka|eastern]] parts of the country and ancient heritage sites located in the interior of the country and resorts located in the mountainous regions of the country.<ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/07/06/bloomberg/sxlanka.php Sri Lanka tourism revives slowly], ''International Herald Tribune''</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/cricket/sri_v_eng_2003/travel_guide/default.stm|title=Sri Lanka tour guide|publisher=BBC Sport |access-date=3 June 2008 | date=21 November 2003}}</ref> Also, due to [[precious stone]]s such as [[rubies]] and [[sapphire]]s being frequently found and mined in [[Ratnapura]] and its surrounding areas, they are a major tourist attraction.<ref name="gem1">{{cite news|url =http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/enlarge/gem-mining.html|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20071213023053/http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/enlarge/gem-mining.html|url-status =dead|archive-date =13 December 2007| title =Gem Mining|publisher = National Geographic Society|date = 16 January 2008}}</ref>

The [[2004 Indian Ocean earthquake|2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami]]<ref>{{cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2005/TRAVEL/01/06/tsunami.travel/|title=Tsunami region seeks tourism boost|publisher=CNN|date=6 January 2005}}</ref> and the past [[Sri Lankan civil war|civil war]] have reduced the tourist arrivals, as a civil war intensified.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://fr.reuters.com/article/idINIndia-30614920071121|title=Sri Lanka tourism earnings hit by war worries - official|newspaper=[[Reuters]]|access-date=10 December 2020}} {{dead link|date=July 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Foreign visitors fell from 566,202 in 2004 during a ceasefire with Tamil Tiger separatists to 447,890 by the end of the war in 2009. From then arrivals grew rapidly to 2,333,796 in 2019. [[2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings|The 2019 Easter Sunday bombings]] reduced arrivals to 1,913,702 though authorities acted quickly to round up the group and travel advisories were relaxed by key generating markets such as the UK as early as June 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sltda.gov.lk/storage/common_media/Tourism%20Growth%20Trends%201971%20_%202019736772868.pdf|title=Tourism Growth Trends 1971 to 2019|publisher=[[Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority]]|website=sltda.gov.lk|access-date=9 December 2020|archive-date=22 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922112357/https://sltda.gov.lk/storage/common_media/Tourism%20Growth%20Trends%201971%20_%202019736772868.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://economynext.com/uk-relaxes-travel-advisory-to-sri-lanka-14327/|title= UK relaxes travel advisory to Sri Lanka |newspaper=[[EconomyNext]]|access-date=10 December 2020}}</ref> [[Lonely Planet]] named Sri Lanka the best destination to visit in 2019 and [[Travel+Leisure]] the best island.<ref name="LonelySL" /><ref name="T+LeiSL" />

The COVID-19 pandemic dealt a major blow to the industry after airports were closed in March 2020. Tourism revenues were estimated to have fallen to US$956mn in 2020 from US$3.6bn in 2019 hurting over 300,000 said to be connected to the industry.<ref>{{cite web |title=Earnings from Tourism (2009 January to Latest) |url=https://www.cbsl.gov.lk/sites/default/files/cbslweb_documents/statistics/sheets/table2.14.1_20201231_e.xlsx |website=cbsl.gov.lk |publisher=Central Bank of Sri Lanka |access-date=6 March 2021}}</ref> The government has announced a number relief measures including a debt moratorium, which were then extended.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://srilanka.travel/covid19/|title= Updated on Covid-19 |publisher=[[Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority]] |website=sltda.gov.lk |access-date=9 December 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.dailynews.lk/2020/11/03/local/232835/relief-package-tourism-sector-continue |title= Relief package for the tourism sector to continue|newspaper=[[Daily News (Sri Lanka)]] |access-date=10 December 2020}}</ref> In 2020 arrivals fell 70 percent to 507,704 from 1,913,702 in 2019, with almost all arrivals coming before airports closed in March.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sri Lanka Tourism Arrivals Report December |url=https://www.sltda.gov.lk/storage/common_media/Arrivals%20Report%20December%20%20-%2020203418234776.pdf |website=www.sltda.gov.lk |publisher=Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority |access-date=6 March 2021}}</ref> In December 2020, under what was called a 'pilot project' 393 package tourists came to Sri Lanka on a charter flights from Ukraine. On January 21 tourism resumed officially allowing independent travellers to also come subject to a series of health rules and Coronavirus tests.<ref>{{cite news |title=Sri Lanka expects tourists from Germany, Dubai as airports re-open |url=https://economynext.com/sri-lanka-expects-tourists-from-germany-dubai-as-airports-re-open-78081/ |access-date=6 March 2021 |publisher=[[EconomyNext]] |date=21 January 2021}}</ref>