Maldives ban leaves limited travel options for Indian tourists
With Maldives out of bounds, Egypt, Russia and South Africa remain the only popular travel options for Indian leisure visitors. These countries do not have a quarantine requirement for Indian tourists as of now.
On Tuesday, Maldives joined the growing list of countries banning visitors from India due to the ongoing second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The island nation has been a popular leisure destination for Indian travelers, who accounted for 21 per cent of all arrivals between January and May.
“The country is receiving and processing applications for all categories, including leisure tourists. We offer opportunities to enjoy a holiday outside of an urban environment, that is, safari in the many game parks. Strict adherence to health and safety protocols are maintained to limit the risk of exposure. The country is on alert level 1 and restaurants and hospitality facilities are open,” said Andrea Kühn, South Africa’s consul general in Mumbai. Among those who travelled to South Africa recently include participants of adventure reality show ‘Khatron ke Khiladi’ that is being filmed in Cape Town.
Travel industry sources, however, point out that demand for travel has slumped due to the second wave of the pandemic. There are non-stop flights between Delhi and Moscow but flights to Egypt and South Africa are limited. The Maharashtra government’s requirement for institutional quarantine of travellers from South Africa is another deterrent.
“There are no enquiries or overseas travel bookings for the past two weeks. People are scared to travel now. Those who were lucky flew out to Dubai and London before the imposition of the travel ban,” said Jyoti Mayal,
president of the Travel Agents Association of India.
Dubai, which has been another popular destination, curbed travel from India last month. Seychelles, which earlier decided to allow only vaccinated travelers, has imposed a ban on Indian visitors.
Many other countries are permitting only their citizens or limited categories of visa holders to travel from India while some like Canada have suspended non-stop flights.
On Tuesday, the Health Protection Agency of Maldives tweeted that starting May 13, tourist visas for visitors from South Asian countries will be temporarily halted.
The safety measures have been put in place in view of the second wave in India and rise in cases in other countries of the region. A curfew, too, has been imposed in parts of Maldives and congregational prayers in mosques have been temporarily stopped.
The island nation has been a major attraction for celebrities and commoners alike from India and was among the very few destinations that was open to Indian tourists.
India has been the second largest source market for Maldives. The islands saw a tourist flow of over 400,000 since January. Russia has been the biggest source market followed by India, Ukraine, Germany and Kazakhstan.
Last month, Maldives imposed curbs on Indian visitors by banning their entry on populated islands. However, Indians could still visit resorts. The second wave has led to a big drop in traffic from India resulting in flight cancellations by Indian carriers.