Tourist arrivals to the Maldives have now surpassed 1.2 million as the island destination seeks to boost annual visitor numbers this year to a record 2.3 million.
According to the weekly update released by the Tourism Ministry, the country welcomed 1,202,262 visitors as of Thursday, marking a 9.6 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
This includes 94,132 visitors so far this July – the highest in the last three years.
The country has been welcoming an average of 6,103 visitors each day.
China continues to dominate as the top source market for tourist arrivals with over 165,000 visitors, contributing to 13.7 percent of the market share. In second place is Russia with over 140,000 visitors.
TOP SOURCE MARKETS:
China: 165,134 visitors (13.7 percent)
Russia: 140,298 visitors (11.7 percent)
UK: 115,133 visitors (9.6 percent)
Italy: 89,951 visitors (7.5 percent)
Germany: 86,927 visitors (7.2 percent)
India: 71,508 visitors (5.9 percent)
USA: 37,414 visitors (3.1 percent)
France: 36,307 visitors (3 percent)
Switzerland: 24,120 visitors (2 percent)
Australia: 23,198 visitors (1.9 percent)
According to records, 72.8 percent of visitors stayed in resorts, while 11.2 percent stayed in guesthouses in local islands, 2.7 percent stayed in hotels, and 2.2 percent stayed in liveaboard vessels.
There are currently 22 international airlines operating in the Maldives.
Tourist arrivals are expected to increase further once the Velana International Airport opens its new international passenger terminal on July 26. The new terminal has the capacity to cater to 7.5 million passengers annually.
The Maldives welcomed a record two million tourist arrivals last year. The island destination, which won the award for the World Travel Awards (WTA) World's Leading Destination for the fifth consecutive year in 2024, expects to raise tourist arrivals to 2.3 million this year.