Malé, Maldives – Czech national Daniela Kilnarova (29) was in for a surprise when she landed in the Maldives on Friday to tremendous celebrations as the 1 millionth tourist in 2022.
Kilnarova expressed her delight and stated that she was honoured to be the millionth visitor this year. Remarkably, it was her first visit to the island nation since the pandemic, having visited the Maldives twice before.
Speaking about this decisive achievement, The Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director (CEO & MD) of MMPRC, Thoyyib Mohamed commended all involved in realising this achievement despite numerous challenges faced due to global issues.
This is a combined effort of government authorities, policymakers, tourism sector employees, and stakeholders who are working hard, day and night, to get here.
Thoyyib Mohamed, MD, MMPRC
Maldives aims to receive 1.6 million tourists in 2022.
Arrivals for this year, as of 31st July 2022, see India as the top source market to the Maldives with 136,828 visitors, followed closely by the United Kingdom with 109,926 visitors. Other top markets include Russia, with 101,409 visitors, Germany, with 76,224 visitors, and Italy with 53,588. The remainder of the top 10 source markets so far this year comprises the United States, France, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, and Spain.
India has maintained its spot in the top 3 source markets to the Maldives since the onset of the pandemic, especially as China closed their borders for international travel. As of today, Chinese borders remain closed.
