MALDIVES: President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has announced that Maldives will re-open its borders for international tourists on July 15th. Resorts, liveaboards and hotels located on uninhabited islands will be allowed to resume business.
However, guest houses and hotels located at inhabited islands will have to wait until August 1st.
Maldives relies heavily on the tourism industry as it accounts for the largest foreign exchange earnings, making it the biggest economic contributor in the country.
However, the sector has come to a standstill due to the stringent public health measures taken to curb Covid-19.
The tourism industry has been gearing up to restart; it is set to resume in compliance to protective measures, considering the safety of tourists and staff working in the industry.
The guidelines for re-opening the tourism sector were released earlier by the ministry of tourism.
They give a comprehensive information for all sectors across the tourism industry on their standard operating procedures, as well as important information to tourists. According to the guidelines, tourists are not required to pay an additional fee, produce a certificate or test result indicative of negative status for Covid-19 prior to entry into Maldives.
For tourists without symptoms, there is no requirement for quarantine either. The guideline will be periodically reviewed based on further developments
