Sri Lanka Boldly Asks Online Travel Agencies to Cut Commissions to Help Revive Tourism
Photo Credit: Jetwing Lagoon Negombo, Sri Lanka. Jetwing Hotels Sri Lanka
Skift Take
Of the several measures to bring arrivals back to pre-Easter bombing levels, a tireless Sri Lanka is asking online travel agencies to slash commissions. It might be better to ask them instead to do a free or at-cost campaign to drive bookings to the country.
By offering free tourism visas on arrival, reducing airline charges to encourage carriers to reinstate flights, and asking online travel agencies to cut commissions, the Sri Lanka government has been rolling up its sleeves to get its tourism industry revving again.
But how reasonable is it to expect the likes of Expedia and Booking groups to cut commissions as part of recovery efforts? And how effective is such a measure as waiving visa fees in bringing back tourists, especially from a market like China, which is also being pursued by a slew of other countries that has eased visa policies?
The government is matching excellent private sector work to prop up one of its top three foreign exchange earners, which was impacted by the April 21 Easter Sunday bombings on hotels and churches in Colombo. Since August 1, it has waived visa fees, typically costing $20 to $40, for citizens from 48 countries, including top three sources India, China, and the UK.
What's more, plans to slash g
