With over 1,000 coral islands, the world’s solely underwater restaurant and idyllic seashores that encourage desktop backgrounds, the Maldives has many causes to draw vacationers. They usually, certainly, make the trek. Final 12 months, a report variety of vacationers visited the Indian Ocean nation.
With over 1,000 resorts, the Maldives skilled a 12% enhance in vacationer arrivals final 12 months in comparison with 2022 – probably the most ever for the atoll nation – totaling over 1.88 million vacationers. In 2022, the island nation noticed 1.67 million arrivals.
Essentially the most arrivals got here from India, Russia, China, the UK and Germany, in keeping with information from the Ministry of Tourism.
For the island nation, tourism is extra than simply welcoming new guests. Tourism is the Maldives’ strongest financial driver, making up 58.3% of its whole economic system in 2022, in keeping with the World Journey & Tourism Council. Over 70% of jobs within the Maldives are within the tourism business.
The nice and cozy-weather nation focused 1.8 million vacationers for 2023 and hit that quantity on Dec. 20, in keeping with a press launch by the Maldives Advertising and Public Relations Company. The nation even celebrated with a particular ceremony for the Dutch vacationer who was the 1.8 millionth customer.
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“We’re immensely happy with this achievement and stay dedicated to reaching the targets set for our tourism business for subsequent 12 months as nicely,” stated Fathmath Thaufeeq, CEO and Managing Director of MMPRC, in a press release in December. “Each customer who arrives within the Maldives has their breath taken away by the pure great thing about our nation, the nice and cozy hospitality of our individuals, and the unequalled number of locations to remain and issues to do.”
The Maldives goals to have much more vacationers arrive this 12 months, and its January arrival numbers are already surpassing the previous two years. As of Jan. 3, 17,441 vacationers entered the nation’s borders, in comparison with 17,346 in 2023 and 15,618 in 2022.
Kathleen Wong is a journey reporter for USA TODAY based mostly in Hawaii. You’ll be able to attain her at [email protected].
