UK relaxes travel restrictions for UK citizens

The British High Commission in Colombo today said UK has relaxed the travel restrictions for its citizens to Sri Lanka, but due to the uncertain security situation in areas recently affected by conflict UK will continue to discourage British tourists visiting those areas.

The High Commission in a statement quoted the British High Commissioner, Dr Peter Hayes as saying;

“I am pleased to announce that we have relaxed the restrictions on travel suggested in the advice we give to British visitors coming to Sri Lanka. We no longer discourage British holidaymakers from enjoying leopard-spotting at Yala National Park, surfing at Arugam Bay or admiring Trincomalee harbour, one of the world’s deepest natural ports. We’ve taken this decision based on our assessment of the improving security situation in these parts of Sri Lanka.

In light of the uncertain security situation in areas recently affected by conflict we continue to discourage British tourists from travelling to other parts of the Eastern Province and continue to advise against all travel to northern Sri Lanka. We encourage Britons planning to travel around Sri Lanka to read our full travel advice”

The UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) provides information to help British nationals make informed decisions about their safety abroad. This includes information on threats to personal safety arising from political unrest, conflicts, terrorist activities, anti-British demonstrations, lawlessness, violence, natural disasters, epidemics, and aircraft and shipping safety. The full FCO advice on travel to Sri Lanka can be found at:

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travelling-and-living-overseas/travel-advice-by-country/asia-oceania/sri-lanka

The FCO regularly reviews the information on its travel website, in particular after any significant incident, and makes appropriate amendments to the level of the advice.

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