Sri Lanka against the Maldives
Almost the same visitors, very different money
Sri Lanka had slightly more visitors than the Maldives last year. Who earned more from them?
The Maldives has none. Not one. And it is paid about 1.75 times as much per person who steps off the plane. [21, 20, 22]
"Last year 2.36 million people came to Sri Lanka. 2.25 million went to the Maldives." [20, 21] Introduction
"The Maldives made $5.4 billion. We made $3.2 billion." [22] Introduction
Note: The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority revised its daily-expenditure methodology in August 2025 (from $171.74 to $148.26 on the new basis), so part of the apparent change in daily spend is a change in counting.
"None" means World Heritage Sites: Sri Lanka has 8.
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