The appeal of the Maldives as a holiday destination is growing beyond honeymooners and luxury travellers to all types of Indians, according to bookings data from Thrillophilia.
The travel website identified an upward trend of popularity among tourists from smaller Indian cities such as Jaipure and Indore in the last quarter of 2021, The Week reported.
Travellers from non-metro cities “generally opt for the best resorts, choosing high-end accommodations and comprehensive tours that include specialty dining experiences and adventure sports.” The biggest sellers in the four-star category included Adaaran Club Rannalhi, Reethi Faru Resort, Oblu Nature Resort at Helengeli, Centara Ras Fushi and Medhufushi Island Resort. Travellers with bigger budgets prefer all-inclusive stays and choose five-star properties such as Oblu Select at Sangeli, Grand Park Kodhipparu and Taj Coral Reef.
Tourists arrivals from India have grown exponentially from fewer than 16,000 a decade ago. In 2019, India overtook traditional European markets to become the second largest source market, driven partly by wide coverage in Indian media of the resort trips of Bollywood celebrities. In the continuing absence of Chinese tourists – who represented the largest market share before the pandemic – India was the top source market in 2021 with 291,787 tourists.
