PORT LOUIS (Reuters) – Mauritius said on Friday that tourism revenue in 2016 will be 1.8 percent higher than it had previously forecast, after a surge in visitors during the first half.

Tourism is a valuable source of foreign exchange for the tiny Indian Ocean country known for its luxury spas and beaches.

Earnings from the sector are now expected to reach 56 billion rupees this year, up from an earlier forecast of 55 billion in May, according to Statistics Mauritius, an official body.

Last year, tourism earnings totalled 50.2 billion rupees.

The statistics agency also raised its forecast for 2016 arrivals to 1,250,000 tourists from 1,240,000. Visitors in 2015 numbered 1,151,723.

In the first half of 2016, Mauritius attracted 586,464 tourists, up 9.9 percent from a year earlier.

(Reporting by Jean Paul Arouff; Editing by Aaron Maasho and Dominic Evans)