November's arrival figure sees 4.3 percent growth from last year
China sits at the top of the list of tourist source markets
Tourists at Velana International Airport (VIA)
The tourist arrival figure for November has seen a 4.3 percent growth from the same period last year.
This was revealed by the Ministry of Tourism through its latest weekly tourist arrival statistics publicized on Friday.
The ministry’s statistics reveal that between November 1 and 20, a total of 115,053 visitors touched down at Velana International Airport (VIA).
The arrival figure for November is an 4.3 percent increase compared to the 110,341 arrivals recorded in the same period last year and a lot more than the 98,378 arrivals recorded in the same period of 2022.
About 5,753 tourists are arriving on average every day during November, and tourists are staying for eight days.
Statistics go on to show that between January 1 and November 20, the Maldives welcomed 1,779,701 tourists.
Arrivals so far this year are a 9.1 percent increase from the 1,630,530 arrivals recorded in the same period last year, and a significant growth from the 1,442,744 arrivals recorded in 2022.
The daily average for 2024 so far is 5,476, and tourists are staying for an average of eight days. The highest number of tourist arrivals recorded on a daily basis so far this year was on February 10, when more than 10,000 tourist arrivals were recorded.
The Maldives welcomed 1.8 million tourists in 2023 and aspires to welcome two million tourists this year.
Further, the ministry revealed that China remains the top source for tourist arrivals, proving a growing demand for travel to the island nation in the eastern Asian region.
China sits at the top of the list of tourist source markets, contributing 13.9 percent of the market share with 246,976 arrivals by November 20.
The year began with Italy topping the tourist arrival markets of the island nation; however, it was replaced by Russia for a few weeks.
Although the United Kingdom ranked in second place for a while, it was replaced by Russia once more.
Russia now contributes 11.2 percent of the market share with 199,726 arrivals recorded so far.
Russia dominated the tourist arrival markets of the Maldives by the end of 2023.
The UK currently ranks in third place in the top 10 markets, contributing 8.7 percent of the market share with 155,062 arrivals.
Although India was among the top three source markets at the beginning of the year, it was replaced by China.
Welcoming the first tourist of 2024 to the Maldives back in January, Minister of Tourism Ibrahim Faisal noted that it was a fantastic start to what promises to be another successful year for the Maldives’ tourism industry. He expressed keen interest in diversifying and exploring additional markets to reach this year’s arrival target. The Maldives welcomed the one millionth tourist of the year, six months in, on June 27.
Tourism was introduced in the Maldives in 1972. It has been 52 years since zealous travelers have visited the Maldives, which has been drawing in visitors with its picturesque beauty for years.
