February 2010 has brought tourist arrivals to a record high as tourist arrival mark hit 77,063 tourists according to the statistics released by the Tourism ministry.
The February figures show a 14 percent increase from the numbers in January 2010 and a big 32 percent increase compared to February 2009; which saw just over 58,500 tourist arrivals.

The ministry’s statistics also shows that China had emerged, for the first time, as the biggest market for Maldives tourism in February, beating the European markets.
The Chinese New Year holiday period may have been a factor, but also China’s rapidly growing middle class has been credited with having a substantial impact on the international travel industry. Italy came in second, with 12,000 tourists, followed by the UK with just over 10,400 tourists.

Traditionally, the United Kingdom and Italy had always claimed the top two markets but with 13,345 Chinese tourists arriving in Maldives during February, China now holds the record for the highest number of tourist arrivals in Maldives during a one-month period. China is also the second biggest contributor to Maldives tourism so far this year, emerging with a 13 percent share.

According to the Tourism Ministry, the occupancy rate for the 20,312 beds in 91 resorts of the Maldives was just over 95 percent, while the average occupancy rate was a bit lower at almost 89 percent. Tourists spent on average 7.4 days in the Maldives, the Ministry added.

Download of the past year statistics are available here.

© 2010 – 2011, Editor. All rights reserved.

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

© 2009, admin. All rights reserved.

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

© 2009, admin. All rights reserved.

Marriage tourism In the Maldvies

If you’re experiencing marital strife, the thought of sharing your two-week holiday in the Maldives with a marriage guidance counsellor may not be conducive to patching things up.

But if one Indian travel firm’s idea to use holidays to pull couples back from the brink of divorce catches on, the concept could be heading for Britain.

Mumbai-based KV Tours and Travels is offering ‘divorce tourism’ packages where couples are accompanied by a relationship counsellor to encourage them to give things another go.

Despite the fact that India has one of the world’s lowest divorce rates with one in 100 married couples breaking up, it is apparently on the rise.

KV Tours and Travels chief executive Vijesh Thakker, who was inspired by the break-up of a friend’s marriage, said: ‘With divorce tourism, what we’re trying to do is to bring together couples who are heading towards divorce to stop them.

Read More

© 2009, admin. All rights reserved.

President Mohamed Nasheed has announced that he will be visiting Italy on the 14 th of this month and that the visit is aimed at increasing the number of Italians tourists arriving Maldives. President said the target is to bring in an additional 5000 Italian tourists this year. President Nasheed made the announcement speaking at a press conference held at the President’s Office on Monday.

Speaking at the press conference President said world tourism industry has slowed down and that he believed Maldives tourism will be exceptionally slow during June and July this year. He said he will be working to bring in more Italians during this period to offset the losses.
He noted that tourists initially came to Maldives from clubs and that most Italians came from clubs like Vacanze and Valtur. He said clubs like these used to sell Maldives at attractive prices and that prices went up as a direct of the increase in the lease rent of the resort islands. He further said such high prices have caused difficulties for clubs to bring in regular tourists to Maldives.

President said during the period when Maldives were marketed at low prices, number of Italians tourists was considerable and that it declined by some 20 percent when the government increased rental charges of the resorts. The losses incurred by the tourism industry as a result of the decline in number of arrivals far out weighed the additional revenue the government generated by increasing the rental fees of the resorts President said.

He also revealed that all expenses to participate in Milan Fair this year will borne by the Italian government and that discussions on the matter is underway with Italian Ambassador accredited to Maldives and Italian Trade Minister.

Some Facts on Italian Market for our President

1- December 2000 ended with 106451 Italians visiting the Maldives. This is a 20% growth over 1999.

2- End of 2000, Italian market share among the generating markets was 22%. Overall tourism arrivals grew by 8.7% in 2000.

3- 2001, Italian Arrivals grew by 8.7% with claiming 25.1% market share overall. The same year, overall tourist arrival growth was negative at -1.3%

4- End of 2002 there was negative growth of -0.7% on Italian arrivals and maintained a market share of 23%. In 2002 the total tourist arrival to the Maldives grew by 5.1%

5- 2003, Italian market grew by 22.1% and overall market share grew to 24.9%. Overall arrival to the Maldives grew by 16.3%

6- 2004, Italian market showed a negative growth of -6.6% and the market share was reduced to 21.2%. The same year Maldives enjoyed and overall growth of 9.4%.

7- 2005, Italian market had a negative growth 46.5%, (largest single drop) and the market share was reduced to 17.7%. The same year there was an overall negative growth on the tourist arrival to the Maldives at -35.9%

8- 2006, the Italian arrivals grew by 69% while the market share was increased to 19.8%. The same year total tourist arrival to the Maldives grew by 52.3%

9- 2007, there was a negative growth of 1.42% on overall tourist arrival from Italy. Overall growth of arrival to the Maldives from all generating markets increased by12.29%.

10- 2008, Italian market had a negative growth of -11.4% and held a market share of 15.2%. The same year Maldives tourist arrival grew by 1.1%

Why is it the way it is?

1- Italian market trends fluctuated along with the time frame between 1972 -2008
2- Propensity to travel and purchasing power parity remained unimpressive over the years
3- Short haul destinations become more accessible and cheaper with comparable product

What have we done?

1- We have failed to predict these trends and take preventive measures
2- Maldives Tourism Promotion Board (MTPB) has over the years equated marketing and advertising
3- Ministry of Tourism would have too much control on MTPB
4- Ministry of Tourism (MOT) has failed to realize the importance of the medium range markets and charter markets
5- Charter Airlines found it too expensive to run the operation to the Maldives (get the corruption out of the way)
6- MOT/MTPB is not properly armed with statistics and research capabilities, thus resulting in blunt decisions costing the country far too much
7- New islands with controlled rent was a disaster as there is no way to control the prices for market mix maintenance in the destination.
8- No proper leadership in one of the most important organizations (MTPB) in the Maldives.
9- Failed to realize the emerging markets and look to grow them for benefits in the long run.

© 2009, admin. All rights reserved.

Maldives is a country known for its water-based activity options. Most of the tourists come over here to take part in these water sports, which are extremely popular. Travelers visit the Maldives to take part in these some of the best water sports available for holiday makers. Scuba Diving Holidays is the most popular activity in Maldives. Scuba diving is particularly famous in this country and thus there are a large number of resorts to be found in this truly exotic country.

Some of the many  Maldives diving resorts are known for their sandy white beaches and exotic lagoons, which serve as popular diving spots. These Maldives best resorts have beautiful beach bungalows with simple yet elegant interior.

The diving resorts are particularly known for the facilities offered by them that allow the tourist for scuba diving or snorkeling. These resorts provide tourists with dhonis that allow them to go for their diving expeditions. The waters surrounding these resorts are filled with exotic marine life, thereby making this activity all the more popular and important. Trained divers assist the tourists in their adventure activity and make sure that they have a great time in a safe and secured manner.

The Diving Holiday resorts in Maldives have all the facilities that make your stay a comfortable one. Laundry service, in-room service, concierge services, internet facility, island Sommelier are some of the many facilities that one can find over here. All the diving resorts have good medical facilities. Some of the resorts also host decompression chamber for diving sicknesses and emergency.
If you intend to travel around the Maldives you would need a boat or as it is known locally a “safari boat”.

Safari boats are liveaboard vessels where all your needs are catered. All liveaboard vessels must comply with high regulatory standards. Most new generation liveaboard vessels are equipped with cabins with attached toilets, air-conditioning in cabins and lounge area, restaurant & bar facilities, sun deck, sound proof generators, video facilities, and diving equipment such as compressors, oxygen cylinders etc. However please make sure you inform us of any specific requirement in order to ensure that your holiday goes as planned.

© 2008 – 2009, admin. All rights reserved.

Maldives Holidays or the Holidays in the Maldives are all about mastering the art of doing nothing. Yet doing every little thing that matters, in style… From best in class water bungalows to world-class resort islands, these stunning islands are the perfect getaway. Home to some of the most colourful marine-life and corals, it follows that scuba-diving and snorkelling are popular past-times here. While by night, you can enjoy international cuisine – all by candlelight under the stars. Put in the simplest form, the Maldives holidays are a lifestyle of paradise.

Maldives, over time became famous for, diving, snookering, honeymoon, wedding, spas, and just the leisure art of doing nothing. They promise, that by the time you are ready to depart, you must have mastered the art of doing nothing, so you take back home a clean relaxes mind and body.

© 2008 – 2009, admin. All rights reserved.

Male’, 30 September 2008

Mr. Abdulla Yameen has been appointed as the new Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation on 29th September 2008.

Former Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation, Dr. Abdulla Mausoom has been appointed as the Minister of Environment, Energy and Water.

The End

© 2008, admin. All rights reserved.

Maldives Holidays services re-launched its website with a new look on July 2008.

The new look with a more advanced web 2.0 standards and user interface and features are catching up easy with the consumers and industry professionals. The reassuring look and theme is based on a magazine theme which makes the visitors stay longer on the website.

New navigation menu and search function ensure all the information are at hand. Also the new News and Updates page get users a peak into the last 8 happenings in the News, Special offers and resort features.

The new look also bring about significant changed over the last version of the Maldives online Guide. The changes included, Hot Spots, a section which features the hottest tourist property in the Maldives, Featured News, a section which show news that require tourists or user attention and the special offers section that shows off the offers from the tourism establishments in the Maldives.

User subscription also allows the visitors to stay up-to-date with what’s happening in the Maldives Tourism industry including industry news and resort information and special offers.

Industry establishments are welcome to advertise on the website. All the advertisements are also entitled 600 word editorial with pictures and one link. For more information please email info@maldivesonlineguide.com

Started as a hobby in 2006, www.maldivesonlineguide.com now attracts thousands of visitors a month with a loyalty rate of over 11 percent. With visitors from 182 countries and territories, UK remains top with over 60 percent visitation followed by US, Spain, Portugal and China.

© 2008, admin. All rights reserved.

Male’, 16 July 2008

Dr. Abdulla Mausoom has been appointed as the new Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation on 15th July 2008. Dr. Mausoom also headed Maldives Tourism Promotion Board from 2004 until his appointment as the Deputy Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation 0n 21st February 2008.

Dr. Mausoom was sworn in following the resignation of Dr. Mahamood Shaugee who has accepted the President’s request for his service as the Vice-Chancellor of the first University to be established in the Maldives.

© 2008, admin. All rights reserved.

The Maldives has been chosen as the Indian Ocean’s Leading Destination by the World Travel Awards (WTA). Male’ International Airport, Maldives won the “Indian Ocean’s Leading Airport” award. The Asia and Indian Ocean Winner Award Ceremony was held in Shanghai, China on the 19th of June 2008. Maldives Tourism Promotion Board accepted the award on behalf of the Maldives tourism industry.

In addition, in the Regional category Conrad Maldives, Rangali Island won the “Indian Ocean’s Leading Hotel” award. Kurumba Maldives won the “Indian Ocean’s Leading Resort” award and Baros Residence, Baros Maldives won the “Indian Ocean’s Leading Villas” award. Vermillion International won the “Indian Ocean’s Leading Travel Agency” award.

In the national category of World Travel Awards, Kurumba Maldives won the “Maldives Leading Resort” award and “Maldives Leading Spa Resort” award. Adaaran Prestige Water Villas Maldives won the “Maldives Leading Water Villas” award.

Maldives won these prestigious awards after a voting campaign which reached more than 167,000 travel agencies, tour and transport companies and tourism organizations in over 160 countries across the globe.

The World Travel Awards is hailed as the “The Oscar of the Travel Industry” by the Wall Street Journal. The World Travel Awards were launched in 1993 to acknowledge and recognize excellence in the world’s travel and tourism industry. Now celebrating its 15th Anniversary, the awards are regarded as the very highest achievement that a travel product could ever hope to receive.

© 2008, admin. All rights reserved.

Maldives Tourism Minister Mahmoud Shaugee said on Sunday he had resigned from the government over plans to lease more than 30 new resorts to make up for a $180 million budget shortfall.

“The submission of my resignation is now official. I submitted it on 3 July,” Shaugee told Reuters.

“My intention today is not to challenge the government, but we have differences of opinion — on policy issues.”

It was not immediately clear if President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom had accepted the resignation, which follows that of Finance Minister Gasim Ibrahim on Thursday.

Shaugee’s resignation follows the government’s decision earlier this month to lease 31 new resorts to bridge a $180 million shortfall in revenues.

The funds had been expected to be generated by a privately funded investment in a new trans-shipment port on the popular tourism destination, but the project has been postponed with no start date fixed.

The new round of resort leases had not figured in the Tourism Ministry’s 2007-2011 masterplan and would have been carried out “without any planning,” Shaugee said.

Shaugee is the sixth minister to leave the cabinet in the past 18 months.

On Thursday, finance minister Ibrahim quit, a day after an auditor’s report revealed the 2008 state budget faced a deficit of 4.4 billion rufiyaa ($344 million).

The International Monetary Fund early this month warned the Maldives government to cut its “extraordinarily high level” of expenditure on state wages and subsidies and increase revenue collection or face possible high inflation.

© 2008, admin. All rights reserved.