15 percentile increase in tourist arrivals from last year

Figures from Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) reveals that the total tourist arrivals to the Maldives has increased by 15.6 percent in the period January to May 2011, as compared to the same months of 2010.

Visitors to the Maldives – an ideal luxury tourist destination famed throughout the world due to the beautiful white sandy beaches, turquoise blue waters of the seas and the friendly staff at the top-notch resorts – stood at 392,020 at the end of May 2011, which is comparable to last year’s figure of 338,582, showing the growth.

Comparing the month of May of 2011 and 2010, one can see a rise of 10.8 percent this year, from 58,324 in 2010 to 64,456 in 2011. Tourists from around the world visit this equatorial heaven throughout the year, as the island nation experiences exceptionally beautiful weather nearly all the time.

As a region, the Middle East showed the highest number of tourist arrivals when comparing the month of May of last year and this year, with an increase of 41 percent. Overall, visitors from countries in Asia and the Pacific have seen a rise from 90,026 visitors in the period between January and May 2010, to 119,733 this year, which is an increase of 33 percent. This is followed by the Americas, from 7,526 visitors last year in the period between January and May, to 9,380 this year, which is an increase of 24.6 percent.

While the country so far in 2011 has had European tourists mostly, with 57,875 tourists in March 2011, the majority of tourists had come from Italy with the figure rising from 13,153 in 2010 to 12,140 in March 2011.

Other countries that have the highest number of tourists coming from include Switzerland with 1,996, Russia with 4,793 and China with 14,889 tourists in May. While the tourist arrivals have increased from all these countries, visitors from United Kingdom have slightly fallen from 9,460 in May 2010 to 7,988 in 2011.

It was on 15 December 2010 that Maldives celebrated the arrival of the 750,000th guest in the country that year. By the end of the year, the beautiful destination saw a few more thousands that raised the total number to an impressive 791,917 tourists.

Hopeful of the number of tourists crossing at least 800,000, the Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture has a target to receive 1 million tourists in this year. After analysing the statistics, officials note that the number of visitors from South East Asia, especially China is increasing year by year.

The Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture announced in 2010 to introduce mid-market tourism to the country, in a bid to lure more budget travellers, with the development of three to four star hotels in the country.