Maldives Has a Plan

Sujith Vasudevan, Managing Editor

This sense of newfound freedom in the aftermath of the pandemic feels like a second opportunity to live our lives. It encourages people to step out and get the best of what they couldn’t enjoy during the global pandemic. While this passion for socializing promises enormous opportunities for the hospitality industry, it also presents an equal amount of challenges, including new consumer expectations where guests seek convenience and sophistication. Especially for countries like Maldives.

The Maldives welcomed over 1.6 million tourists last year, surpassing its tourist arrival targets despite the challenges. It’s quite lucid that travelers worldwide are looking for well-being-oriented and immersive experiences. This drives a massive surge in leisure travel within the domestic market and the inbound international travel landscape. Even corporate travel and MICE are being extended to incorporate elements of leisure experiences. Lend your ears to Sunjae Sharma, Managing Director, India & Southwest Asia, Hyatt India Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. He elucidates, “The human desire to reconnect with loved ones and experience the joy of traveling together to newer destinations has never been so intense. This is reflected in the growing demand for staycations, workcations, and weekend getaways.”

The country’s tourism ministry recently unveiled the Fifth Tourism Master Plan, setting out the ‘vision, policy priorities, and strategies for the next five years. The plan targets increasing annual tourism receipts to $6 billion by 2027, up from an estimated $4.2 billion in 2023. The tourism hotspot will also have to keep a keen eye on the Smart Hospitality market, which is driven by the need to create unique hospitality experiences and is predicted to grow from $13.6 billion in 2022 to $49.9 billion by 2027 (report by ResearchAndMarkets.com) at a whopping CAGR of 29.8 percent. In this issue, we bring stories from this beautiful country.

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