The Maldives welcomed 809,603 tourists by 29 June, reaching 50% of the 1.6 million arrivals target for 2022 in the first half of the year.
A total of 107,281 holidaymakers visited from 1 to 29 June, a whopping 97.5% increase from the same period last year. Total arrivals so far this year is up 59.2% from 2021 but falls short of pre-pandemic levels by -5.6% as 857,823 tourists visited during the same period in 2019. The average duration of stay this year is 8.2 days.
India remains the top market with 119,967 tourists as of 29 June, representing a 14.8% market share, followed by the UK (96,176 tourists), Russia (81,266 tourists), Germany (67,608 tourists) and Italy (48,914 tourists).
The Maldives tourism industry continues its robust recovery despite setbacks posed by the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – which caused arrivals to plummet from the top market – and the complete absence of Chinese holidaymakers, who accounted for the largest source market before the pandemic.
Tourist arrivals in May meanwhile surpassed the pre-pandemic record, prompting the tourism ministry to declare that the “Maldives is now a year-round destination.” The record signalled a shift from the “seasonal tourism” that prevailed with a peak period from December to March, Tourism Minister Dr Abdulla Mausoom told the press, expressing optimism for future prospects with more favourable global conditions.
May was only the fourth month – after August, October and November 2021 – to record an increase in arrivals compared to the corresponding pre-pandemic period since borders reopened in July 2020.
