Tourism falls twenty per cent year-on-year as war disrupts long-haul routes
The March print: a 20.7 per cent decline from March 2025, driven by cancellations through Dubai, Doha and Istanbul.
Final figures for March show a 20.7 per cent year-on-year decline in international arrivals, the Ministry of Tourism confirmed on Wednesday — the steepest monthly fall since the early pandemic and a direct consequence of the Iran war.
Cancellations concentrated on transfers through Dubai, Doha and Istanbul; the closure of airspace over parts of the Gulf for much of the first fortnight compounded the effect.
More from Tourism
Niva Kurumba rebrand closes out the first-quarter transition
The portfolio adds its flagship on the last day of March.
Shangri-La Villingili to reopen in Addu Atoll this year
After nearly three years of closure, a flagship in the deep south returns.
Half a million tourists before March closes, in spite of the war
502,252 arrivals by 4 March — the pace softens but does not break.
February is the best month ever for tourism, with 247,722 arrivals
A new all-time monthly record, posted before a shock that will reshape the quarter.