Li Hao

    LOCAL travel agencies have said they would keep the public informed about the situation in the Maldives, whose president stepped down after widespread protests Tuesday, to let tourists decide whether to reschedule trips.

    There were five local travel groups with a total of 105 tourists in the Maldives, who were safe and mainly self-guided tourists, according to statistics released by the city’s culture, sports and tourism bureau Tuesday evening.

    “We will keep a close eye on the situation in the Maldives and provide timely information and suggestions to people who come to register for the tour,” said Zhu Jun, a manager of the Shenzhen Port China Travel Service.

    “Most tourists prefer self-guided or semi-self-guided trips to the Maldives. They only require us to arrange air tickets and book hotels,” said Zhu.

    The annual travel peak season, which starts in October, is close to conclusion, he said.

    Guan Wenlu, project manager of the Shenzhen China International Travel Service (Shenzhen CITS), told Shenzhen Daily yesterday the crisis did not affect tourists in the Maldives.

    The Shenzhen CITS had around 70 tourists in the Maldives, most of whom were not in tour groups. Some were scheduled to return to Shenzhen today, Guan said.

    “The coup happened in the Male, which is seldom visited by tourists. Popular resorts in the country are feeling no impact from the coup. In addition, the Embassy of the Maldives in China yesterday assured the public on its official microblog that the country was safe for tourists,” said Guan.

    “Although our tourists usually arrive in the Maldives at the Male airport, there are several islands between the airport and the capital city,” said Guan.

    On its official microblog, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday reminded people not to go to Male if it was avoidable.