Mumbai: Colombo-based Cinnamon Life, South Asia’s only integrated resort, has introduced unified payment interface (UPI) payments to allow Indian travellers to pay in Indian currency using their existing UPI applications. The hotel’s operator Cinnamon Hotels & resorts has introduced the facility across its 17 properties in Sri Lanka and Maldives.
Announced at Mumbai's Outbound Travel Mart 2026
The announcement was made by Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts’ CEO Hishan Singhawansa at the international travel trade show ‘Outbound Travel Mart 2026’ hosted in Mumbai from February 5 to 7. The group announced that it has started accepting UPI payments at all its city hotels, beach resorts, cultural stays and wildlife lodges, including its flagship Cinnamon Life at City of Dreams, a large-scale integrated resort combining 800-room hotels, gaming, dining, retail and convention space. The property is the largest private sector investment in Sri Lanka with $1.2 Billion.
India’s outbound tourists are expected to grow from 20 million to 50 million in the next five years. Currently it remains Sri Lanka’s largest inbound tourism market with over 5 lakh tourists in 2025 and the demand spanning leisure travel, destination weddings and MICE. The UPI system was accepted as a legitimate payment method by Sri Lanka in February 2024. Currently, the system is also accepted in Nepal, Bhutan, Singapore, Qatar, Mauritius, UAE and France. Notably, India is in talks with eight more countries to make UPI payments acceptable.
Aiming to Reduce Friction for Indian Guests
According to Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts, the move is aimed at reducing friction for Indian guests by eliminating the need for currency exchange, cash handling or international card usage. Speaking at OTM 2026, Singhawansa said that Indian travellers are increasingly prioritising ease and familiarity alongside experience and introducing UPI is a practical response to how Indian travellers already live and spend, rather than a standalone technology initiative.
Talking to The Free Press Journal, Singhawansa said, “Sri Lanka is not as technologically mature as India but we love UPI. Through Lanka QR tourists can now pay at all our hotels and restaurants through UPI.”
Target: 10 Lakh Indian Tourists in 2-3 Years
He added that the demand is driven by the estimate that Indian tourists in Sri Lanka will increase to 10 lakh in the next two to three years. He stated that the demand is fulfilled by the strong air connectivity between Colombo and India’s key destinations like New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and other cities in the southern part of the country and introducing UPI payments is to fuel the growth in inbound Indian tourists.
The CEO said that while MICE travellers have a fixed timetable, the young GenZ group of travellers is seeking authentic experience and looking for real connection in Sri Lanka. He also added that the country is trying to attract more and more Indian tourists with its wide range of destinations including beaches, national parks, wildlife as well as spiritual tourism like the Ramayana trail.
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