Maldives will pass the one million tourist arrival mark next month, assures Tourism Minister

Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Ahmed Adheeb has said the Maldives will achieve the one million tourist arrivals goal in November this year.

Speaking to the press at an event to mark the start of scheduled direct flights by Hong Kong airline Cathay Pacific to the Maldives, Adheeb said he is certain the Maldives will pass the one million arrival mark next month.

“We have received the latest statistics and are reviewing them now. We are quite certain, God willing, that we’ll reach one million in November,” Adheeb said. “In November, we will mark the one millionth tourist to visit the Maldives, which will go alongside events to mark 40 years of tourism in the Maldives.”

Referring to Cathay Pacific’s new direct flights, Adheeb noted that having a direct flight between Male’ and Hong Kong is a very positive development for the expansion of Maldives tourism.

He said while Maldives already receives a fair share of Middle Eastern airlines, the majority of airlines from the Eastern Asia are chartered flights and that Cathay Pacific’s new route will increase tourist arrivals from Asia.

“Hong Kong today is regarded as the city of the world. They’re marketing the city as ‘the world’s city in Asia.’ So a link between ‘the sunny side of life’ is, I believe, a very strategic move,” Adheeb said.

“Middle Eastern airlines are many. From the other side (Middle East and Europe), we receive more chartered flights than scheduled flights. The only premium airline we have from this side is Singapore Airlines. I believe that this link to Hong Kong by Cathay Pacific will allow us to tap traffic from ASEAN and other countries. This is also a step towards tapping the U.S. market,” Adheeb said.

According to the Minister, more international airlines will start scheduled flights to the Maldives in the near future.

“I really appreciate the work being done by Defence Minister Nazim through the Civil Aviation Department. He is working in full speed. The Royal Jordanian Airline has applied and Singapore’s budget airline Tiger Airways has also shown some interest,” Adheeb said.

He said the increase in scheduled international airlines to the Maldives is a clear indication of the stable progress Maldives tourism is experiencing today.