Some 809,245 tourists visited the Maldives by the end of May, up 15 percent from the first five months of last year.
According to statistics published by the tourism ministry on Saturday, tourist arrivals increased by more than 10 percent every month with the exception of May. Despite a fall of 3.6 percent last month, 120,960 tourists visited in May.
The China market overtook the USA market at sixth place with a market share of 5.4 percent. Some 46,396 Chinese tourists visited by the end of May.
China was the top market for Maldives tourism before the covid-19 pandemic. After a three-year hiatus, Chinese tourists returned on January 18.
Russia is presently the top market for the Maldives with a 11.6 percent market share. Some 94,213 Russian tourists visited during the first five months of the year.
India in second place represents a 11.3 percent market share with 93,879 tourists arrivals.
By the end of last month, 60,830 tourist beds were in operation at 1244 properties. An estimated 1.8 million tourists are expected to visit this year.
