Doha: Qatar Airways and Visit Maldives have agreed on a strategic partnership to further grow international tourism to the tropical island getaway. The agreement brings together an airline and destination that have been leaders throughout the pandemic in providing safe, reliable, and luxurious travel experiences despite the many challenges.
The strategic partnership will see the two organisations collaborate on marketing activities in several markets worldwide to grow international visitor numbers to the Maldives, maximising the opportunities provided by Qatar Airways’ extensive global network of over 140 destinations. Less than a year after being the first international airline to resume services to the Maldives in July 2020 with daily flights, Qatar Airways expanded operations to four daily on July 1. Passengers travelling to the Maldives can enjoy the airline’s renowned 5-star service on board a mix of the airline’s state-of-the-art Airbus A320 and Boeing 777 aircraft.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, H E Akbar Al Baker said, “The Maldives has always been a strategically important destination in our network, as demonstrated by our airline being the first to resume international services and our rapid expansion of flights from daily to four daily in less than 12 months. This partnership with Visit Maldives is a natural next step in achieving both of our organisations’ long term objectives for this route, and we look forward to working closely with Visit Maldives to help further grow international tourism to the Maldives.”
Managing Director of Visit Maldives, Thoyyib Mohamed, said, “I am delighted that Qatar Airways has increased flights to the Maldives! This increase indicates Qatar Airways’ continued trust and support in the future of Maldivian tourism. Qatar Airways have always supported us at Visit Maldives, the tourism marketing body of Maldives, with our global marketing campaigns. We appreciate the immense support given by Qatar Airways during this challenging period in history. The increase in flight frequency from Qatar Airways gives confidence to travellers across the world that Maldives is one of the safest destinations to travel to during this time.
“With regular joint webinars conducted for key markets, launching of special packages such as “safe travel bubble package” last year, and with an exciting joint campaign targeting 14 markets in the pipeline, Qatar Airways is instrumental in the marketing campaigns undertaken by Visit Maldives to promote the Maldives as a safe haven. We are extremely excited about this decision by Qatar Airways, and we look forward to seeing the success of this new development.”
Also speaking on the partnership, the Maldives Minister of Tourism, Hon. Dr. Abdulla Mausoom said, “Qatar Airways was there to reopen the Maldives borders and restart tourism. The touchdown of Qatar Airways flight QR672 from Doha to Male on July 15, 2020, with 129 passengers, was a new beginning for the airline and the Maldives. Since then, the presence and frequency of flights have been increasing. Being amongst the top three passenger carriers to the Maldives, we appreciate the support and engagement of Qatar Airways in the Maldives tourism recovery. With these new frequencies to the Maldives, Qatar Airways is sending a strong message to the world, a commitment, that when the borders and gates open, they will be there. We are glad they are here in the Maldives. Thank you, Qatar Airways, for being an important partner of the Tourism Success Story of Maldives.”
Since reopening the borders for international travellers on July 15, 2020, the Maldives has been hailed as a major tourism success story amidst the pandemic. With an arrival figure of almost one million travellers, the Maldivian tourism industry is on the path to achieving pre-pandemic arrival figures. Travellers from the Middle East region were among the leading arrivals to the Maldives post the lockdown period and continue to grow stronger day by day.
Meanwhile, passengers can book flights with peace of mind, knowing that Qatar Airways offers unlimited date changes and fee-free refunds for all tickets issued before August 31, for travel completed by May 31.
The carrier’s industry-leading flexible booking policy also provides the permanent feature of exchanging tickets for a travel voucher with 10% additional value for all customers booking travel via qatarairways.com. For full terms and conditions, visit qatarairways.com/Flexibility.
