ITB Berlin 2010 Begins!

ITB Berlin, world’s leading travel trade show, is where global business happens! The ITB Berlin Convention is regarded as the leading think tank for the global travel industry. From 10 to 14 March 2010 more exhibitors than ever before will be presenting their products and services, which cover the entire added value chain of the international travel industry.

The 11,127 exhibiting companies from 187 countries occupy the whole of the Exhibition Grounds, comprising 26 halls and covering 160,000 square metres.

According the organiser Messe Berlin the show drew slightly more participants than last year.In 2009 a total of 11,098 companies from 187 countries exhibited their products and services to 178,971 visitors, who included 110,857 trade visitors.

The Maldives Tourism Promotion Board and other institutions involved in the tourism industry will be taking part to promote the Maldives in the fair.

This year’s Berlin show will be the first to include a platform for “mobile travel services” which highlights the future mobile usage in looking and booking hotel services and ticketing.

At the start of the 44th ITB Berlin there are encouraging signs for the travel industry, Exhibitors are looking to the future and investing to make their presentations at the fair a success.

Story of Sun Eclipse from Anantara Resorts Maldives

On 15th January 2010 the sun rose, heralding another day in paradise, complete with blue skies, sparsely populated with soft white clouds. As the hours passed there was a sense of growing anticipation as staff and guests alike looked forward to witnessing a solar eclipse, and it had been predicted that the islands of the Maldives would be the best spot for viewing this annular eclipse of the sun.

To compliment this exceptional spectacle, Anantara Resorts designed a splendid Eclipse Cruise. At 11am, participating guests accompanied by Resident Manager Patrick Both, set sail for a vantage point which would afford unobstructed views of the eclipse.

As the Moon moved slowly between the Earth and the Sun, chilled aromatic champagne and delectable canapés were served as guests mingled and observed the progress of the moon through special eclipse-glasses. At approx 12:20 our party was rewarded at first with a clear and spectacular view of the eclipse; then, as clouds moved across the sky, the sight was perhaps even more striking; it was indeed a memorable excursion for all those on board.

A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, totally or partially obscuring Earth’s view of the Sun. The solar eclipse of January 15, 2010 was an annular eclipse of the Sun, which happens when the Moon’s apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun, causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring), blocking most, but not all of the Sun’s light. The Maldives was in fact the best place for viewing this eclipse as this is where it was longest on land with 10.8 viewable minutes.

New Seven Wonders of Nature – Finalists Part 2

Maldives has been nominated for the New 7 Wonders of Nature campaign. This campaign is a process in which seven natural wonders of the world are chosen by people through a global poll which will be declared in the year 2011.

The campaign is being organized by the Swiss based New7Wonders Foundation after their success in organizing the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007.

For the Finalist stage, the 28 New7Wonders of Nature Finalists have been put to popular vote in July 2009. Voting will continue throughout 2010 and into 2011. During this time, the New7Wonders World Tour will visit each of the Finalists to allow them to present themselves to the voters across the globe.

The New 7 Wonders campaign aims to promote cultural diversity by supporting, preserving and restoring monuments and natural sites. It relies on private donations and revenue from selling broadcasting rights.

Please vote for Maldives by visiting www.new7wonders.com and make its beauty known to the world as one of the natural wonders of the world.

The Maldives guide team would like to call all Maldivians, fans and well wishers of Maldives to join our effort to make Maldives as one of the Natural Wonders of the World.

You can also join the facebook group and follow on twitter.

World’s first ever underwater cabinet meeting concludes in the Maldives

World’s first ever underwater cabinet meeting was chaired by the President Mohamed Nasheed. The meeting was conducted at a depth of six meters (20 feet) just north of the capital Male’.

While in the underwater meeting the cabinet including president and the vice-president signed a document ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December, calling on all nations to cut their carbon emissions.
Ministers spent half an hour on the sea bed and communicated with white boards and hand signals.

World's first ever Cabinet meeting Underwater - Maldives

They will also participate in a bicycle ride in the capital Male later in the day.

source: http://presidencymaldives.gov.mv/

British Airways Launches New Flights to Maldives

British Airways is to launch its new thrice-weekly direct flights from Gatwick to Male, Maldives from October 25, 2009.
The new service will be the first time ever British Airways has offered flights to the Maldives. As of now, the new flights to Male will depart on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays.

Holidays in The Maldives will introduce British Airways customers to a fantastic selection of tiny palm fringed coral islands each with its own exclusive resort hotel. Each of these international standard hotels in the Maldives is four or five stars in quality offering a great range of activities such as diving, snorkelling, sailing and fishing, or you can simply laze your days away sunbathing on a stunning white, sandy beach.

The routes will be operated by Boeing 777 aircraft with a three-class configuration: World Traveller, World Traveller Plus and Club WorldBritish Airways is to launch its new thrice-weekly direct flights from Gatwick to Male, Maldives from October 25, 2009.The new service will be the first time ever British Airways has offered flights to the Maldives. As of now, the new flights to Male will depart on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays.

Holidays in The Maldives will introduce British Airways customers to a fantastic selection of tiny palm fringed coral islands each with its own exclusive resort hotel.

Each of these international standard hotels in the Maldives is four or five stars in quality offering a great range of activities such as diving, snorkelling, sailing and fishing, or you can simply laze your days away sunbathing on a stunning white, sandy beach.

The routes will be operated by Boeing 777 aircraft with a three-class configuration: World Traveller, World Traveller Plus and Club World.

Source: pr-canada.net

Maldives to ban reef shark fishing by March 2010

When Maldives Minister of State for Fisheries and Agriculture stood up to speak at the South West Indian Ocean Fisheries Commission steering committee meeting in Mombasa, he talked extensively about the shark and how the tiny archipelago is changing its fortunes from the sea creature.

But to the surprise of many, especially the Kenyan delegation, the minister, Dr Hussein Rasheed Hassan, explained that his country was in the process of banning fishing of sharks from its waters, making it the first nation in the region to make such a move.

The majority of states in the region do not attach such value to the sharks.

But in Maldives, where the number of sharks has plummeted in recent years due to their killing by fishermen targeting them for their lucrative fins, the predator are a key feature of the tourism sector.

In 1998, a 10-year moratorium banning shark fishing was imposed to cover the seven atolls where tourism had been established on the assumption that many tourists visited the Maldives to see sharks.

However, with the spread of tourism to almost all islands in the country, the ministry decided to expand the ban to encompass all reef sharks fishing across the Maldives within a 12 nautical mile radius (22km).

Dr Hassan said the Maldives government has now given a one year notice of a total ban on reef shark fishing by March 2010.

“We have realised that it is more economically viable to leave the shark and other sea creatures unharmed because the country currently earns about $7 million annually from the diving industry,” Hassan said.

The reason for the ban, he said, was to increase the stocks and add value to diving tourism and attract more tourists who visit the islands for their beautiful underground coral gardens.

“The marine ecosystem is very fragile and that is why we have to regulate activities that coupled with the treats of climate change could adversely affect the major sources of income for the country,” he said.

With most of its 1,000 scattered islands without electricity, Maldives has in the past few years become a favoured tourist destination for honeymooners as well.

Dr Hassan said that, today, the country receives tourists twice its 350, 000 population every year.

In Maldives, sharks have a particularly valuable role in the tourism industry, which generates some 30 per cent of the country’s GDP.

According to surveys, about 30 per cent of tourists visit the Maldives for its underwater marine with life, viewing sharks and manta rays as their top priorities.

Source: http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/news

Healing and Relaxation at an Exotic Over-Water Spa at Anantara Spa Maldives

Spanning an expanse of 1500 square metres and featuring nine treatment suites, the Anantara Spa, Maldives innovatively brings the natural environment into each room with specially-constructed glass floor panels that enable guests to observe the vibrant marine life within the azure waters below. Two double treatment suites, both with an alfresco relaxation area and Jacuzzi, allow couples or friends to revel in the luxury of their treatments side by side. Dedicated treatment rooms for Ayurvedic and Thai therapies are designed and decorated to reflect the unique cultures in which these treatments originated, providing guests with an authentic experience.

Its dramatic setting in the sparkling turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean was conceived of and executed by Maldivian architect Mohamed Shafeeg, together with Thailand-based interior design company Abacus headed by John Lightbody. With a truly unique location, this over-water spa allows the tranquil sounds of the ocean waves and the expert hands of gracious therapists to lull every guest into a deep state of relaxation.

Anantara Spa was designed in harmony with the natural landscape and the resort’s architecture, focusing on the exotic beauty which evokes a feeling of ‘spiritual tranquillity and harmony’ with nature. Emphasis has been placed on light and space whilst respecting the environment and allowing for the free flow of energy.

With so many spa treatment options, guests may desire the advice of the professionally trained therapists found in a private consultation area.  Those who are unsure of which treatment to select, as well as those with specific goals in mind, can receive personalised guidance and necessary information to make a well-informed decision.

The Anantara Spa massage menu offers techniques from Thailand, Hawaii and India as well as indulgent Aromatherapy to calm the senses. Aromatherapy, Thai and Oriental Foot Massage can also be enjoyed under the sun by the pool or beachside, or in the privacy of guests’ villas or suites.

The curative Anantara Detoxifying Signature Treatment invites guests on a healing journey through the use of mud, steam, and massage that have the power to cleanse the body and mind.  Rhassoul, or moor mud, long used for its richness in vitamins and minerals, is applied to the body before a period of luxurious relaxation to promote cleansing and aid the skin in the absorption of active ingredients. Guests are encouraged to linger in their peaceful repose while a therapist applies the light massage of a manual lymphatic drainage that stimulates lymphatic circulation, reduces fluid retention, and assists in the continued elimination of toxins from the body.

The blissful 60-minute skin-nourishing White Sesame Body Treatment, a popular choice after a day in the sun, uses a mixture of crushed sesame seeds and yoghurt, enriched with the finest oils to hydrate and calm dry and sensitive skin.  After a morning of tennis, a day of kayaking, or a stressful work week, muscle tension and fatigue can be relieved with the Elemis Musclease Aroma Spa Ocean Wrap, which uses a warm seaweed body mask infused with soothing pine and purifying rosemary essential oils.

The epitome of luxury can be experienced in one of the spa’s signature baths, like the Exotic Ginger Bath to restore harmony or the anti-oxidant rich Detoxifying Green Tea Bath to purify.  Both are perfect preludes to the sumptuous Cellutox Aroma Spa Ocean Wrap or the therapeutic Lymphatic Drainage Massage.

Rituals of Wellbeing, borrowing from traditional and ancient techniques, range from the 90-minute Beautifying Hand Ritual to the 145 minute Asian Ritual, which includes a peaceful Oriental Spa Bath, stress-relieving Back Massage, and an Oriental Foot Massage based on an age-old therapy that links the reflex zones on the feet to organs and systems in the body.

The three to five day Anantara Spa Voyages of Wellbeing packages combine the essence of herbal steam, body rejuvenation, massage, and facials for an indulgent head to toe experience that restores the senses to a natural state of peace and balance.

Set in the idyllic archipelago of the Maldives, the Anantara Dhigu Resort & Spa is a luxurious five-star hideaway spread across five acres of tropical terrain on Dhigufinolhu (island) on the South Male Atoll and is conveniently located only 30 kms from the Maldivian capital of Male. The resort has 68 deluxe beachfront villas, two deluxe beachfront pool villas, 38 deluxe over water suites and two deluxe over-water pool suites all set around a natural, private lagoon.

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For more information please visit www.maldives.anantara.com