Russia, Italy, UK lead tourist arrivals as China falls to fourth

Tourist arrivals from China have declined in 2026, with Russia, Italy and the United Kingdom now the three largest source markets for the Maldives, according to the latest statistics released by the Ministry of Tourism on Sunday.

The data shows that the highest number of arrivals so far this year has come from Russia, followed by Italy and the United Kingdom.

China, which was the largest source market last year, has fallen to fourth place. Germany ranks fifth, while India is sixth.

According to the ministry, a total of 170,709 tourists arrived in the Maldives as of the 24th of this month. This represents a 6.5 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.

The ministry said the daily average arrival stands at 7,113 tourists.

Of the total arrivals, 68 per cent stayed in resorts, while 26 per cent stayed in guesthouses.

The top ten source markets so far this year are:

At the end of last year, total tourist arrivals reached 2.2 million. This was below the government’s target of 2.3 million arrivals.

The government aims to attract 2.4 million tourists this year.