TOURISM

Tourism is the largest industry in the Maldives. It earns foreign exchange for the country and also provides employment opportunities for both locals and expatriates. There are more than a hundred tourist resorts in different atolls. There has been a steady increase in the number of tourists visiting the Maldives. Many arrive by chartered flights on package tours. At Male International Airport you can see airlines like Lauda Air and Monarch Airlines, which are not usually seen at other airports. Most of the tourists are from Europe. There are also a large number of tourists from China, Japan and India.

Tourists are attracted to the white sandy beaches and clear waters. Water sport is the main activity. Tourist arrivals dip during the rainy season when they cannot engage in water sports. Tourist activities include swimming, fishing, scuba diving, snorkeling, surfing, water skiing, wind surfing and kite boarding. Maldives with its coral reefs has beautiful under water scenery. The marine life includes Manta rays, sharks, dolphins and turtles.

Tourist resorts provide rooms, suites, restaurants, coffee shops, bars, discos, cabarets and diving schools. Resorts are located on islands that are not inhabited by the locals. Everything is available in the resorts including pork and liquor. Speed boats going to the resorts can be seen with Christmas decorations during December. Some resorts are known to provide drugs to the tourists. Drugs are sometimes hidden under water in the sea to avoid being caught during raids by the police. Divers go into the sea to fetch the required quantity when the tourists request them. Some tourists come to the Maldives for their honeymoon. There are uninhabited islands that they can rent for a few days.