The United Kingdom (UK) has lifted travel restrictions to the Maldives. Grant Shapps, the Secretary of State for Transport of UK revealed the Canary Islands, Mykonos, Denmark and the Maldives have been added to the travel corridors list.
In addition to that, The UK High Commission also announced on 22nd October 2020 that the Maldives has now been deemed except from the list. This is great news for travellers from the UK, as this now allows holidaymakers to travel to the Maldives without the need to self-isolate on arrival back to the United Kingdom.
This change will come into effect from 4 AM GMT, Tomorrow, 25th October 2020. British High Commissioner to the Maldives Caron Rohsler shared delight upon the UK lifting the travel restrictions to the Maldives. Furthermore, the commissioner emphasized the travel industry in the Maldives, and in the UK, tells everyone there is pent-up demand among British tourists. Foreign Minister of the Maldives, Abdulla Shahid also said the Maldives looks forward to welcoming more tourists from the UK.
It is my utmost pleasure to welcome this decision by the UK govt to include Maldives in its #TravelCorridors list. Naturally socially distanced islands allow the Maldives to be a safe & tranquil destination for all. We look forward to welcoming many more tourists from the UK.
Foreign Minister of the Maldives, Abdulla Shahid tweeted.
Earlier this month British Airways has also resumed its operations to the Maldives. The airline will operate 3 weekly flights to the Maldives from London Heathrow.
Also read: British Airways Resumes Operations to the Maldives
The United Kingdom is among the top 10 tourist source markets to the Maldives. Before the lockdown in March, a total of 7,288 visitors from the UK arrived in the Maldives in 2020. Furthermore, 625 tourists also arrived from the UK in September 2020. Meanwhile, during the first 15 days of this month (1st October to 15th October 2020) the Maldives recorded 525 arrivals from the United Kingdom.