Asean Travel News Travel News Agency in Delhi
Maldives has welcomed its first international tourists by Qatar Airways flight on July 15 morning amid the COVID-19 pandemic, after nearly four months of following lockdown restrictions along with border closure to limit the risk of importation and spread of COVID-19 in the country.
The Qatar Airways (QR) flight, with 107 foreigners and 24 Maldivians onboard, was first commercial passenger flight that landed at Velana International Airport in Male since the island imposed restrictions on arrival of foreigner travelers on March 27, 2020.
Minister of Tourism Uz. Fayyaz Ismail, Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation Aishath Nahula, Managing Director of the Maldives Airports Company Ltd (MACL) Moosa Solih, industry stakeholders and senior dignitaries of the government were also present at that time.
After Maldives announced the reopening of borders, almost 40 resorts are now in operations. Hotels, resorts, guest houses and live boards located on uninhabited islands have been opened for bookings from July 15, 2020 whereas accommodation located on inhabited islands will be open for bookings from August 1, 2020.
Maldives will also grant a 30-day tourist visa to all nationalities that plan to travel to Maldives for holidays. On arrival, travelers will not be subjected to quarantine measures but they will required to provide medical test results certify that traveler has tested negative to COVID-19 and has no any COVID-19 symptoms.
To ensure the hygiene standards and health safety of all tourists and staff, the Ministry of Tourism in Maldives has issued a COVID-19 safe tourism guideline which must be followed by all airports, transportation, accommodations and other tourism related facilities.
In regards to resumption of international flight operations, Emirates (EK), Etihad (EY), Qatar Airways (QR) and Sri Lankan Airlines (UL) have scheduled passenger flights to Maldives in July. Moreover, the management of Maldives Airports Company Ltd (MACL) is also offering incentive support from airport charges to international airlines operating to Velana International Airport in Male, in a bid to encourage the airlines to resume international flight operations.
The airport operator said in a statement, “As a key contributor to the aviation and tourism industry, our success has always been focused on our partnerships and therefore we have offered discounts from ground handling, landing, navigation and parking charges to all the international scheduled airlines. Our incentive package will start from July15, 2020 and will continue till March 26, 2021.”
In regards to COVID-19 transmission in Maldives, the island has reported a total number of 2,831 confirmed cases which are under treatment and 14 patients have lost their lives due to virus. However, 2,321 patients who tested positive to COVID-19 have completely recovered from the virus, as of Thursday (July 16).
