Sri Lanka offers free visas amid tourism crisis

<p>As Sri Lanka’s tourism crisis continues, Colombo announced that they will offer free tourism visas on arrival, in a move to boost tourist numbers following the Easter Sunday bombings.</p> <p>Visa-free entry will be available to 48 nations and the offer will remain for six months.</p> <p>On April 21, Islamist extremists targeted three luxury hotels in Colombo and three churches in Batticaloa, Negombo and Colombo, killing over 250 people.</p> <p>Following the attacks, several countries then issued travel advisories, undermining Sri Lanka’s tourism industry. Foreign visitor arrivals fell by 70.8 per cent in May.&nbsp;</p> <p>Tourism Development Minister, John Amaratunga, confirmed the move and said that he expects the move to boost tourist arrivals.&nbsp;</p>