The Hon. (Dr.) Prasanna Gunasena
Hon. (Dr.) Prasanna Gunasena stated that increasing tourists’ length of stay and daily expenditure requires adding more activities, noting Sri Lanka’s current per-visit spending is below that of destinations such as the Maldives. He highlighted railway-based tourism initiatives, including the promotion of the Ella–Badulla sector, the Calypso Train, and expanded Ella Odyssey services, while saying action had been taken against a ticketing “mafia.” He added that tourist trains are being maintained and serviced after the season, with attention to comfort and cleanliness on key tourist routes.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Tourism revenue depends on length of stay and daily spend—currently about USD 172 per day and roughly USD 1,500–2,000 per visit, compared to Maldives at around USD 4,500. We must add activities. Rail has contributed via popular services: we promoted the Ella–Badulla sector targeting the Nine Arch Bridge; it became so popular that a ticket mafia emerged, which we have curbed. We launched a Calypso Train (Badulla–Nanu Oya sector) and increased Ella Odyssey frequencies, adding a Kandy–Badulla service. We focus on comfort and cleanliness on tourist routes. Post-season, those trains went to Ratmalana for servicing rather than general deployment, to prepare for the next season.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Thursday, 9 October 2025 ·No. 22973 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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/lk/speeches/7490
Cite as: The Hon. (Dr.) Prasanna Gunasena. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 9 October 2025. No. 22973. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/7490