Maldives wants Lankans to laze on white beaches
Sri Lanka to holiday in its growing guest houses in 80 of the inhabited islands of the atoll nation. Maldives Association for Travel Agents and Tour Operators (MATATO) Vice President Abdullah Suood speaking with the Business Times on the sidelines of the Maldives Showcase 2018 in Colombo said that the Maldives was in town to attract Sri Lankans to holiday there on a low budget between US$70-120 per night.
Maldives Tourism together with MATATO conducted business-to-business meetings and a trade show showcasing the new guest houses and hotels coming up on the islands.
Already Maldives Tourism has been attracting more budget travellers from Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and India for the last five years, he said. Of the 1.4 million arrivals in 2017 to the Maldives, at present the low budget travelers comprise up to 20 per cent of their total traffic, Mr. Suood said. These guest houses are located on islands where locals inhabit and is tipped to become an advantage to the residents since they would be able to earn more through various opportunities from travelers visiting the islands, he noted.
Moreover, he pointed out that despite the fact that these are dry islands with no alcohol allowed the Maldivians were smart enough to serve their guests the beverage on a floating bar in proximity to the islands. Based on the overturn of a piece of legislation in 2009 by the government at the time in the Maldives the country opened all of its islands to hotels without segregating the locals from the tourists as was the policy in the past.
Travel Agents Association of Sri Lanka (TAASL) President Trevor Rajaratnam explained that this was the first time that Maldives Tourism has come to Sri Lanka to attract more visitors. He pointed out that it was common for people to think that holidaying in Maldives is beyond their budget but here it is shown that it is affordable.
They hope to attract these type of guests to their islands during the off peak season from September to November, he noted.
Maldives experienced a significant drop in arrivals due to the political uncertainty there and visitors from countries like China had been specifically asked not to vacation there.