Tourism industry generates MVR 1 billion as income

Total number of tourists who visited Maldives during the first quarter of 2019 increased with the increase in European tourists to the country.

Statistics published by Maldives Monetary Bank shows that the number of tourists who visited the Maldives during the first quarter of 2019 was greater than the number of tourists who visited the country during the first quarter of 2018.

Quarterly bulletin of MMA says that the increase in tourist arrivals is due to the increase in international flights to the country and the improvement in the domestic flights of the country.

MMA estimates that the income of tourism industry reached MVR 1.1 billion during Q1.

The number of flights from foreign airlines arriving to the country increased during the first three months of 2019 which led to an increase in the demand for Maldivian tourism in these countries. There was a fifteen percent increase in the international flight moment compared to the previous year.

The greatest number of European tourists who visited Maldives were from Italy. Tourists from France are in the second of the list with Germans in the third position.

The report of MMA also highlights that 35 percent of the tourists who visited Maldives in Q1 are from Asian countries. This is a 16 percent in the number of tourists compared to the previous year.

While the number of Indians who visited Maldives increased by 86 percent, the number of tourists from Taiwan and Australia also increased during Q1.

Moreover, Chinese tourists have been gradually increasing after the fall in Chinese tourists visiting the Maldives.

By the end of Q1, a total of 139 resorts were functioning in the industry. This is 10 resorts more than the number of resorts during Q1 of 2018.

With a total of 44,707 beds in the country, the occupancy rate of the beds were 88 percent.