White sand beaches, welcoming locals, wild elephants living in their natural habitats and eight UNESCO World Heritage sites make Sri Lanka a tourist's paradise.While her friends gave positive reviews of their past holidays in Sri Lanka, Australia's official Smart Traveller advisory urged visitors to "exercise a high degree of caution" as the country holds its presidential elections later this year.
Despite this tumultuous history, Priantha Fernando, chairman of the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, said tourists shouldn't be deterred from visiting. "Only about 24 square kilometres still needs to be cleared, but it has been marked and cordoned off," said Hugh Baker, The HALO Trust's program manager.
"It's mesmerising to join in and be immersed in this cultural event," she said, noting the importance of respecting local customs. The Sinhalese people form the majority of the population, while the Tamil community makes up 11 per cent, mostly living in the northern and eastern provinces."The beaches are less crowded; we have temples and hidden gems like the library, which is one of the oldest in Asia, home to historic Palmyra palm tree manuscripts," she said.
"We now offer tours to Wilpattu National Park or walking tours in Horton Plains to see sloths and nature," Ms Fernando from Grasshopper Adventures said.On her most recent trip to Sri Lanka, Australia-based French tourist Camille Rey opted to visit Wilpattu National Park rather than a more popular alternative.
Poornaka Delpachitra, who heads the Sri Lanka branch of Australian-owned tourism company Intrepid, is passionate about increasing this number."There's a growing trend of more female travellers coming to Sri Lanka, and they often want to travel with a female guide, whether for safety or hearing a female perspective on culture," he said.
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