Maldives is an attractive destination for Muslim tourists: Tourism Ministry

Ministry of Tourism has said that the Maldives is an attractive destination for Muslim tourists around the world.

Minister of State for Tourism Maleeh Jamal said today at a press conference after attending the World Islamic Tourism Fair held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from Thursday to Saturday last week, that the idea of Islamic tourism is growing at a fast pace.

He said that Muslim tourists are often faced with the challenges of finding the right food and prayer rooms, and that these needs are catered to in the Maldives.

“Most foods imported to Maldives are halal, and the resorts are equipped with mosques so praying isn’t a problem. So Maldives is a special destination for Muslim tourists,” Maleeh said.

He said that Muslim tourists will be a target group when developing the new master plan for the tourism sector.

He noted the importance of the Malaysian market for tourism in Maldives, and said that a lot of effort is underway to promote Maldives in Malaysia.

“We anticipate that tourist arrivals from Europe will fall due to the economic recession. So we have to make up for that by targeting other markets. In this sense, I believe that the Malaysian market is very important,” he said.

Tourist arrivals from Malaysia increased by 55 percent last year, and by 28 percent this year when compared with the corresponding period last year.

Ministry of Tourism said that much work is planned to promote Maldives in other countries.