Tourist arrivals to reach 100,000 in December

The Ministry of Tourism has said that 100,000 tourists are estimated to arrive in the Maldives in December 2012.

Minister of State for Tourism Maleeh Jamal said in an interview with Sun Online today that this year’s target of one million tourists is likely to be achieved.

“The best for us, always, are the final three months. That is, October, November and December, and especially December. Based on the arrival rates now, it is likely that 100,000 tourists will visit in December. October and November are also going well,” he said.

Maleeh noted that the recent increase in the number of airlines operating to the Maldives is one reason behind the estimation of 100,000 tourists for next month.

The airlines that have commenced operations to Maldives are budget airline Fly Dubai and Turkish Airlines.

Maleeh said that this would facilitate travel to Maldives for several new tourists, and that occupancy at the resorts has already started showing signs of improvement.

“Places like Dubai are great markets, which bring good quality tourists. Airlines like Fly Dubai would increase tourist arrivals from those destinations, which would benefit Maldives. The same goes for Turkish Airlines and Maldivian,” he said.

Numbers revealed by the Tourism Ministry show that from January to September 2012, 691,608 tourists visited Maldives. Tourist arrival in September 2012 was 76,806.

Maleeh highlighted that currently, the highest tourist arrivals are from China; and due to the economic problems in Europe, arrival numbers from Europe are not likely to increase.

“Considering all these trends, we will be able to reach our target by the end of the year. Our tourism looks good,” Maleeh said.