By Velana International Airport (VIA) recorded its third-highest number of arrivals in its history yesterday, according to MACL (Maldives Airports Company Limited).
MACL statistics show that the airport’s highest arrival record was set on February 10th this year, with 11,207 arrivals. The second-highest record was achieved the following day, February 11th, with 10,775 arrivals. February traditionally sees the highest arrival numbers at VIA.
This year, the airport has recorded over 10,000 arrivals on eight different days. The recent period from Friday to Sunday has also seen consistently high numbers, with daily arrivals exceeding 10,000.
The surge in travel is attributed to school holidays and New Year celebrations, with many people traveling both domestically and internationally. With the government announcing a four-day New Year holiday, passenger numbers are expected to increase further.
Private jet movements at VIA have also increased by 8% compared to December last year, with 148 jet movements recorded up to last Saturday. This increase coincides with the peak tourism season.
A MACL official stated that they have deployed additional staff to handle the increased traffic at the airport.
This year has been historic for Maldives tourism, reaching its target of 2 million tourists. The 2 millionth tourist was an Austrian woman traveling with her husband and two children. This is a significant increase from last year’s 1.7 million tourists.
With the completion of VIA’s major development project and the opening of a new terminal next year, the government has set a new target of 2.2 million tourists for the coming year. The new terminal, scheduled to open mid-next year, will have the capacity to serve 7.5 million passengers annually.