Shangri-La’s two Sri Lankan hotels more than tripled their after-tax profit in the first half of 2026, filling more rooms even as national tourist arrivals slipped.
After-tax profit reached US$ 6.8 million, against US$ 1.9 million in the same period of 2025 — an improvement of US$ 4.9 million. The half-year result already represents 85% of the full-year 2025 profit of US$ 8.0 million.
Revenue rose more modestly, up 7.7% to US$ 21.0 million from US$ 19.5 million. The gap between a 7.7% revenue increase and a near-quadrupling of profit shows up in the margin: after tax, it widened to 32.4% from 9.7%.
Volume, not price
The operating detail points to occupancy rather than rates.
- Occupancy rose eight percentage points to 52%, from 44% — the largest gain across the group’s destinations.
- Average room rate fell 4.8% to US$ 140, from US$ 147.
- Revenue per available room rose 12.3% to US$ 73, from US$ 65.
In other words, the properties discounted modestly and filled materially more rooms, and the combination left them better off per available room.
Rising against the market
The occupancy gain ran counter to the national trend. Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka fell 1.8% to 1,146,573 in the period, from 1,168,044. Within that total the source markets moved sharply in opposite directions: India led with 293,683 arrivals, up 21.4%, while Russia fell 31.1% to 77,349.
Against the parent group, the Sri Lankan properties punched above their size. They contributed 14.8% of the segment’s total US$ 45.8 million profit while accounting for only 2.1% of group hotel property revenue. Shangri-La Asia Limited holds a 90% stake in both hotels.
A note on the reporting period
The figures above cover the first half of 2026 and come from the parent company’s interim accounts. Daily Mirror published this analysis of the Sri Lankan segment on 10 November, several months after the period closed — so the filing is current, but the trading it describes is not the most recent quarter. Readers should not read the occupancy and arrivals figures as describing conditions in November.
Not reported
The filing does not name the two properties, quote any executive, or give a second-half or full-year outlook. It does not say whether the lower average room rate was a deliberate pricing strategy or a function of the changing source-market mix — a relevant question given the 21.4% rise in Indian arrivals against a 31.1% fall in Russian ones. Daily Mirror’s account carries no reporter byline.
