Maldives records 5,177 tourist arrivals in one month since border reopening

Maldives recorded 5,177 tourism arrivals in the one-month period which has passed since the country reopened its borders on July 15.

Statistics released by Maldives Immigration on Sunday shows Maldives recorded 1,701 tourist arrivals by the end of July, and an additional 3,476 tourist arrivals by August 15.

The biggest source market for tourist arrivals in July was the United Kingdom with 258 arrivals, led by the United States with 189 arrivals.

Meanwhile, the biggest source market for tourist arrivals in August is the United Arab Emirates with 504 arrivals so far. It follows 421 arrivals from the UK and 336 arrivals from the US.

The Maldivian Tourism Ministry has been hit with criticism over failure to receive the safe tourism stamp, especially after neighboring Sri Lanka received the stamp. When questioned over the importance of the stamp, Tourism Ministry responded that it will work to secure the stamp by becoming a World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) member state if local tourism industry stakeholders find it imperative to secure the approval.