The Maldives welcomed a record number of daily tourist arrivals on August 7, the most since its border reopening in July 2020.
The Maldives closed its borders to tourists on March 27, 2020 as a precautionary measure against COVID-19. The tourism-dependent archipelago reopened its borders on July 15 the same year, and the number of arrivals has been steadily increasing since then.
According to the Tourism Ministry's latest statistics, 6,083 tourists arrived in the Maldives on Saturday. The average daily tourist arrival numbers have been above 4,000 since the beginning of this month. Over 5,000 arrivals were recorded twice this month.
While the number of tourists visiting the Maldives is increasing day by day, the tourism-dependent archipelago has been relaxing strict measures imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tourists can now stay at local guest houses on inhabited islands in addition to private resorts. A negative PCR test result from samples taken 96 hours prior to traveling is accepted to enter the Maldives.
The Maldives welcomed 1.7 million tourists in 2019, and the number fell to 555,494 in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The government hopes to welcome 1.5 million tourists this year. The target can be achieved if daily arrivals are maintained above 2,500. Currently, the top source markets for Maldives tourism are Russia and India.
