VIA saw a record number of tourist arrivals on Friday since border reopening

Velana International Airport (VIA) saw a record number of tourist arrivals on Friday, since Maldives opened borders for international travel on July 15.

Speaking on RaajjeTV’s ‘Fashaairu’ programme, VIA’s Terminal Operations General Manager Ibrahim Hussain revealed that a total of 708 arrivals were recorded on Friday, out of which most were from Russia.

335 tourists arrived from Russia’s Aeroflot flight, 13 from Etihad Airways, 153 from Emirates and 121 from Qatar Airways on Friday.

Further, the airport’s statistics further reveal that five tourists arrived from Turkish Airlines, 16 from SriLankan Airlines and 65 from Maldives national airline, Maldivian.

Hussain revealed that eight flights arrived in the Maldives on Friday and the total number of individuals who departed from the country on Friday sits at 597.

In addition, eight domestic flights also operated at VIA on Friday which saw 153 arrivals in Malé City and 161 individuals departed from the capital region.