Maldives is hoping to move away from its image as an upmarket tourist destination and lure more value travellers, a top government official has said. “Right now, Maldives is seen primarily as a tourist destination,” said Mohamad Adam, assistant director of the Maldives Tourism Promotion Board (MTPB). “We plan to build resorts where tourists can stay at rates starting from $100 a night.”
The country, comprising 1,190 small, mostly uninhabited coral islands, embarked on a tourism development spree in 2006, putting up 35 islands for development. Fifteen have been handed over to the private sector, while the rest are to be developed by the MTPB. “Each island will have one resort,” said Adam.
All 35 resorts are expected to be completed in the next three years, said Adam. Once completed, it will raise hotel ‘bed capacity’ to 23,000 from the current 17,500, he added. The country is hoping that the new developments will help to attract one million tourists by 2010.
Maldives boasted 600,000 tourist arrivals in 2006. Arrivals from the GCC are expected to jump this year as more direct flights from the region to Maldives are planned this year. Etihad Airways plans to start operating flights to Maldives in November, said Adam, and more flights from Dubai are also expected.
Source: 7Days
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