- Sri Lanka voted #1 Emerging Destination for 2019 in Asia
A panel consisting of five of the world’s top travel influencers and bloggers has voted Sri Lanka as the top emerging Asian travel destination for 2019.
The awards were published last week on the site TravelLemming.com, which focuses on emerging and off-the-beaten path travel spots around the globe.
Winners for the Asian awards were selected by an expert panel consisting of five of the best renowned travel bloggers and influencers in the world, with a combined following on social media of over 750,000. In describing why Sri Lanka won, the article reads: “Sri Lanka has been poised on the edge of tourism popularity for a few years now, and 2019 might finally be the year it pops.
In fact, it was just named the #1 country in the world to travel to in 2019 by Lonely Planet. And, honestly, it’s hard to disagree with that assessment. From dreamy surf coasts to quiet jungle retreats, to incredible wildlife and history, Sri Lanka has all the makings of one of the greatest travel destinations on the planet.”
One of the judges, Meg Jerrard of the popular travel blog Mapping Megan, is quoted as saying: “Sri Lanka is a mesmerising and magical place with something for everyone, and enough diversity to keep a trip interesting. It has stunning beaches, is a haven for budget travellers, has flavourful food, and there are oodles of heritage, wildlife, and incredible landscapes just waiting to be hiked.”
Other judges on the panel included popular gay travel bloggers Nomadic Boys, hipster travel star Travels of Adam, the San Diego-based Instagram star Hackerette, and the acclaimed travel blogger Otts World.
Travel Lemming CEO Nate Hake said: “One of the biggest trends in travel these days is the desire of tourists to get off the beaten path. Our six winning destinations in Asia are all great options for wonderful places to explore without the crowds!”
The site TravelLemming.com is dedicated to the promotion of travel to emerging travel destinations. The name lemming derives from the Scandinavian rodent, which is rumoured (falsely) to engage in such mindless group behaviour that it will literally follow fellow lemmings of a cliff to death. Travel Lemming encourages travellers to think beyond the popular destinations and to forge their own path.
Travel Lemming was started by its founder Nate Hake, an American traveler from Denver, Colorado who is most famous for visiting 43 countries in a single year.