Ministry of Tourism has revealed that Russia has become the top source market for tourist arrivals.
After the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the number of tourist visits from Russia decreased dramatically until the country dropped to the third biggest contributor by market share. However, the latest statistics from the tourism ministry show that Russia is once again the top source market with 4,402 tourist arrivals and 19.7% of the market share. India, which was the top source market for tourist arrivals at the end of 2022, is now the third biggest contributor with 1,605 arrivals. The second highest number of tourists so far this year visited from Italy with 3,854 arrivals and the fourth highest visited from the United Kingdom (UK) with 1,261 arrivals.
The ministry recorded 22,297 tourist visits so far this year, which is a 7% increase compared to the 20,842 visits recorded in the same period in 2022. Additionally, 59,657 tourist beds are in operation in resorts, hotels, guesthouses, and liveaboards across the Maldives.
The government aims to welcome 1.8 million tourists in 2023 and break last year’s record of 1.6 million tourists.