Etihad returns and SriLankan add new flights.
Some good news for Sri Lanka travelers: Etihad Airlines announced this week that they will resuming flights to Sri Lanka from January 2010. They will be operating four flights per week from Abu Dhabi to Colombo. Flight EY266 will depart Abu Dhabi on Monday, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays at 2155 and arrive at Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport at 0345 the following day. Return flight EY267 will depart Colombo on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 0445 and arriving in Abu Dhabi at 0800 the same morning. Etihad had stopped flights in late 2007 due to a slump in demand but the end of the north-east conflict means the route should be profitable. Etihad’s return will provide tourists with another good option for travelling to Sri Lanka and hopefully ensure some extra competition to keep prices down. Hot on the heels of this news, SriLankan Airlines announced that it would be increasing flights to 12 cities worldwide based on rising tourist numbers. Tourist arrivals jumped 31% in August 2009 compared to the same month the previous year. Two flights have been added to the popular London-Colombo service.
