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Axel Jarosch: maintaining Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru, Angsana Ihuru’s appeal amidst growing competition

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Axel Jarosch is by all means a hospitality veteran. Turning a childhood dream into a successful career that is marked by high-level postings all over the world with some of the most reputed hotel chains in the world, he still sees hospitality as one of the most gratifying fields.

It is this enthusiasm, coupled with years of experience, that he brings to his current role as General Manager for North Male, responsible for overall operations for Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru and Angsana Ihuru.

Before taking up his current posting in the Maldives in January, the German-born hospitality executive, who holds a Bachelors degree in International Hotel Economics and Hospitality from Fritz Gabler Hotelfachschule Heidelberg in Germany, served as the General Manager of Banyan Tree Al Wadi and Banyan Tree Ras Al Kaimah in the United Arab Emirates for almost two and a half year.

Prior to joining Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts in 2014, Axel was the General Manager at Six Senses Zighy Bay. He has previously served as the Operations Director responsible for the hotel openings of Anantara Hotels, Resorts and Spas in Abu Dhabi, and has also held the position of General Manager with Anantara in Oman, Bali and Indonesia during pre-opening stages. He has also held managerial roles at Per AQUUM, Constance Hotels, InterContinental Hotel Group, and Starwood Hotels and Resorts Group. In addition to his time in the Gulf, he has worked in Sri Lanka, the Seychelles, Namibia and Mauritius.

In an interview with Maldives Insider, Axel looks onto the challenges as well as the opportunities of running Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru, one of the oldest resorts in the Maldives, and its sister property Angsana Ihuru in North Male Atoll, in the face of ever-increasing competition and changing travel trends.

Maldives Insider: How did you develop an interest in tourism and hospitality?

Axel Jarosch: I started my career at the age of 22. I studied economics, and while going to university in Germany I worked part-time in a number of hotels and restaurants. I started at the very bottom, doing an internship at a business hotel in Germany. I progressed in my career, going into food and beverage. I developed myself from a waiter to a restaurant captain to a supervisor to a manager to Assistant Food and Beverage Manager to Executive Assistant Food and Beverage Manager to Resident Manager and finally becoming a General Manager. My first General Manager posting was with Per AQUUM, opening The Fortress hotel in the Sri Lankan town of Galle.

On my first day itself, I fell in love with the industry. Working in this industry is very gratifying because you make it your day’s work to make other people happy. That for me is very unique.

I have always wanted to work internationally, moving and seeing other countries and cultures. This was a profession that gave me that opportunity. I have been blessed to have been able to work in South East Asia, Middle East, Africa and in the Indian Ocean. I cannot imagine doing any other job!

MI: When was your first visit to the Maldives?

AJ: I visited the Maldives for holiday about 10 years ago, and immediately fell in love with the country. What is there not to like? It really is a paradise.

What I find extremely unique about the Maldives is to have a team of predominantly local associates; in the case of Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru and Angsana Ihuru, people who have been working in this island for 15-30 years! To keep doing what they do with so much passion after so long is amazing. I am used to working in very remote locations, and I love working on these islands. In our profession, we do not have the same day twice. We are always welcoming different guests and dealing with new challenges. So, it is never boring.

Aerial view of Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru. PHOTO/ BANYAN TREE

MI: What do you focus mostly on in overseeing the operations of Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru and Angsana Ihuru?

AJ: My main focus is to continue the successful operation of Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru and Angsana Ihuru in the North Male Atoll, while maintaining the high standards that Banyan Tree is known for. I am also focused on continuously improving the services that we give to our guests. It can only be achieved by overseeing the training programmes and career development opportunities available to the associates, and by succession planning.

It is also my responsibility to increase awareness in the international arena about these two resorts. Banyan Tree was one of the first international brands that came to the Maldives. We were the first to introduce the spa concept to the Maldives. But we cannot live in the past. We can only move forward, evolve and grow the brand as well. We have got three beautiful resorts in the Maldives, but it does not mean that everybody knows about us.

MI: What are the efforts being made to achieve those goals?

AJ: One of my favourite words is consistency; being consistent in providing our guests with brand standards of personalised service. I think this is where we stand out, and Banyan Tree as a hotel group is unique. It is not so much about a guest staying in a villa, but more so about knowing the preferences of the guests and making sure that we personalise everything we do. For example, if you come in the morning for breakfast on your first day here and order a cappuccino, the team takes note of that and offers you a cappuccino the next day at breakfast rather than offering you the full expanse of our coffee menu. Another thing we do is to have the same associate look after you on your every visit and create a bond between the guest and the team here. This is something we are good at, and we see that pay off by the high percentage of repeat guests we have. That is because the guest feels at home here rather than being in a hotel.

A beach front pool villa at Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru. PHOTO/ BANYAN TREE

MI: What are the programmes conducted to maintain the service standard?

AJ: We look after our team well. As an employer, Banyan Tree is well-known for fair employment; of looking after the interests of the associates and recognising the good work they do. That is reflected in the very low staff turnover that we have. Having that high number of team members that have been loyal to the company speaks for the brand itself.

We make sure that each and everyone of our team is treated fairly and that they can continuously develop themselves. For example, under our cross exposure programme, we send a member of the team to one of our other resorts either in Thailand, Seychelles or elsewhere. We have jop swap; for example, I have right now team members from one of our Thailand properties looking after the main restaurant here. Their counterparts here have gone to Thailand to look after the main dining restaurant in Banyan Tree Phuket.

MI: What are the challenges in running an established property like Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru?

AJ: Logistics is always a challenge when it comes to working in the Maldives, where tourism resolves around the ‘one island, one resort’ concept. You have to know what to buy, when to buy and how much to buy. Everything else is easy because our resorts and our teams are very well-established.

But knowing that you have a 20-year-old product and still maintaining a certain standard that makes guests pay a certain amount of money to stay in is a challenge. In the recent past, we have made minor renovations such as changing the concept of our main restaurant to show some innovation. We have also added pools to the villas.

Since then, it has been about maintaining those standards through what we call a villa maintenance programme. Under this programme, every guest villa is completely redone every single year.

A deluxe beach front villa at Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru. PHOTO/ BANYAN TREE

MI: A number of new resorts are opening up across the Maldives, and especially in the Male region. Would this affect the performance of established properties like Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru?

AJ: I welcome competition. I think it is important, especially in hospitality. The moment you have competition, you start to develop your own property because you obviously do not want guests to go to another property.

Our resorts in North Male Atoll are very small; Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru has 48 villas and Angsana Ihuru has 45 villas. We have not seen a downturn in occupancy. We have been very lucky, especially in the first half of this year, as we were able to reach our forecast in terms of occupancy. I do not think a lot of our guests will go to other resorts because guests that come to a Banyan Tree have certain expectations. For example, we do not have any water villas here in the north. We are one of the few resorts still maintaining that original concept. Guests that come here want direct access to the beach and we have kept it that way. There are resorts opening up with over 100 water villas here in this atoll as well, but those are for a different clientele.

We are very lucky, as we have been very successful over the last 20 years. The awareness about Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru amongst our base clients, which is still predominantly Europeans, will continue to give us the exposure. But we need to concentrate on emerging markets that are now discovering the Maldives. Countries with three to four-hour flight distance like India, whose people have more disposable income than before, are now coming to the Maldives as well. So, we need to tap into those markets, and make sure that we are not relying on just one market.

Destination dining at Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru. PHOTO/ BANYAN TREE

MI: What should be done to tap into those markets?

AJ: We need to find the demands and expectations of guests coming from those markets. For example, Indian guests will have different expectations from Brits. We need to find ways to cater to those demands on a personalised level, be it adapting the restaurant menu, an entertainment concept or different recreational activities.

MI: How would you describe your experience in the Maldives?

AJ: It has been extremely satisfying. I consider myself very fortunate and lucky to be here. I love the brand. I started working for Banyan Tree because of the core values of sustainability that the brand has. We have been adopting several sustainable practices, be it coral planting, turtle programmes and preserving the underwater beauty of the Maldives, which is two thirds of the overall beauty of the country. The fact that Banyan Tree as a group puts such an emphasis on this makes me so proud to be part of this team.

We have guiding values of sustainability, including building green communities. All these values are followed by every Banyan Tree property in the world. We do some things a little bit differently here in the Maldives. For example, every Banyan Tree resort is tasked to plan 2,000 trees per year. Obviously being in the Maldives, there is so much that you can plant. So, instead of trees, we plant corals. Our marine lab, which is one of the first marine labs in the Maldives and has been operating for the past 15 years, puts a lot of emphasis on creating coral gardens, especially following the recent El Nino effect.

We also work together with local ministries and organisations to do studies on fish populations. Our work also extends to educational programmes with local schools.

Drink

Golden encounter: Atmosphere Kanifushi and Bottega unite Maldivian soul with Italian craftsmanship

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Atmosphere Kanifushi is set to host a golden fusion of Maldivian spirit and Italian craftsmanship from 4 to 6 December, as Atmosphere Core presents a three-day celebration in collaboration with Bottega SpA, one of Italy’s most renowned lifestyle wineries.

Sandro Bottega, President and CEO of Bottega SpA, remarked, “The Maldives is an iconic destination, a paradise for leisure and diving. We are proud to showcase our selected wines at Atmosphere Kanifushi, in an expression of refined hospitality that blends seamlessly with the Italian lifestyle. I am certain that this three-day experience, dedicated to Prosecco, will beautifully unite the Bottega philosophy with the island’s soul.”

The celebration begins at Just Veg, the Maldives’ first vegetarian restaurant, where acclaimed Italian Chef Fabrizio Marino will curate exclusive lunch and dinner menus paired with signature Bottega vintages. On the second day, the festivities move to Pier Six, featuring elegant seafood pairings, followed by an evening of golden cocktails, sizzling teppanyaki, and Venetian carnival-inspired delights, set against panoramic lagoon views.

The event culminates in the Bottega Gala Gold Dinner on the beach, where all in-house guests will be invited to raise golden flutes of GOLD Prosecco DOC under the starlit sky. The evening will unfold to the sounds of live bands and DJ performances, with the ocean’s rhythm creating the perfect atmosphere for a night of elegance, indulgence, and unforgettable moments. Every element—from the cuisine and wine to the music and cinematic storytelling—will harmoniously come together to craft a truly immersive experience.

Bottega’s Head Sommelier, Elena Schipani, will personally host the pairings, guiding guests through the stories and characteristics of each vintage. All events will be complimentary under the Kanifushi Plan™, subject to pre-booking and availability. “Atmosphere Kanifushi has long been celebrated for its culinary creativity and heartfelt service,” said Raman Gomathi, Director of Food and Beverage. “This Golden Wine Encounter embodies our commitment to experiences that combine artistry with authenticity. The team has poured its heart into creating this first-of-its-kind celebration, a true reflection of our Joy of Giving philosophy.”

This golden celebration also symbolises Atmosphere Core’s growing relationship with Italy. In 2026, the group will debut its first European property, BORGO MONCHIERO Heritage by Atmosphere, in Piedmont—a region known for its rolling vineyards and exceptional gastronomy. The collaboration with Bottega SpA, alongside culinary artistry from Chef Fabrizio Marino, offers a glimpse into this exciting journey, uniting Maldivian warmth with Italian elegance.

A fourth-generation family estate, Bottega SpA epitomises quality, authenticity, and timeless design—values shared by Atmosphere Core. Together, they invite guests to a radiant celebration where fine wine meets the joy of island living.

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Awards

Kudadoo Maldives crowned Best All-Inclusive Hotel by Condé Nast Traveler

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Kudadoo Maldives Private Island, the ultra-luxury retreat renowned for redefining indulgence and privacy, has been named Best All-Inclusive Hotel by Condé Nast Traveler, one of the world’s most esteemed travel publications.

This prestigious recognition celebrates Kudadoo’s signature “Anything, Anywhere, Anytime” concept — a philosophy that allows guests to design entirely bespoke experiences tailored to their desires.

Part of the esteemed Crown & Champa Resorts (CCR) portfolio, Kudadoo combines cutting-edge architectural design, pristine natural beauty, and an unwavering guest-first approach to create stays that are both intimate and extraordinary. Guests can savour private sandbank dinners under starlit skies, bespoke underwater dining, serene sunset cruises, and curated wellness journeys, all orchestrated to perfection.

The resort’s all-inclusive model transcends conventional definitions, removing boundaries for those seeking freedom, privacy, and absolute indulgence. Every detail — from world-class gastronomy and curated excursions to on-demand personal experiences — reflects Kudadoo’s commitment to limitless luxury. Whether it is a spontaneous snorkelling trip, a private cinema night on the deck, or a cultural discovery across the atoll, every moment is crafted with precision and heartfelt care.

“This recognition from Condé Nast Traveler is a proud moment for the entire Kudadoo team,” said Akira Shiota, General Manager of Kudadoo Maldives. “Our ‘Anything, Anywhere, Anytime’ philosophy enables us to deliver a level of personalisation rarely found in the world of luxury travel. Each guest enjoys a truly unique experience, and this award is a tribute to the dedication, creativity, and passion of our team in bringing these experiences to life.”

Ahmed Shaheen, Chief Commercial Leader of CCR, added, “Kudadoo continues to set new benchmarks for luxury hospitality in the Maldives. Being named the world’s best all-inclusive hotel by Condé Nast Traveler underscores not only the excellence of our service but also the success of our pioneering concept. We are immensely proud to provide experiences that guests will treasure for a lifetime.”

By earning this accolade, Kudadoo Maldives reinforces its status as a world-class resort and demonstrates how the notion of all-inclusive luxury can evolve to meet the expectations of today’s experience-driven traveller. The recognition stands as a testament to Kudadoo’s pursuit of perfection and its dedication to delivering the highest standard of personalised service in one of the world’s most breathtaking destinations.

Earlier this year, Kudadoo Maldives Private Island was also featured among Condé Nast Traveler’s “16 Best Private Island Resorts in the World” for 2025 — further cementing its reputation as one of the planet’s most exceptional and exclusive escapes.

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Awards

Condé Nast Traveler honours Kuramathi Maldives among region’s best resorts

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Kuramathi Maldives has been recognised among the Top 20 Indian Ocean Resorts, securing the 18th position with a score of 93.54 in the Condé Nast Traveler 2025 Readers’ Choice Awards, as voted by travellers from around the world.

Renowned as one of the Maldives’ most cherished island escapes for both couples and families, Kuramathi offers a wealth of experiences across its expansive setting. The island features a diverse collection of villas, restaurants, bars, and leisure facilities that blend luxury with natural beauty. From infinity pools overlooking the Indian Ocean to its famed mile-long sandbank, lush tropical gardens, vibrant house reef, and world-class diving, the resort provides countless opportunities for exploration and relaxation.

Guests can spend their days paddleboarding across the crystal lagoon, snorkelling among marine life, or enjoying restorative treatments at the Kuramathi Spa. The resort’s accommodation options include beach villas seamlessly integrated into the landscape and over-water villas suspended above turquoise waters. For families or groups, the spacious Two Bedroom Beach Houses offer generous living spaces close to the reef or lagoon, while Bageecha Kids Club provides complimentary activities such as outdoor playgrounds, splash pads, football pitches, indoor play areas, and special excursions, including a hermit crab trail through the island’s jungle.

Kuramathi is also a destination for culinary exploration, with 12 restaurants serving an impressive range of cuisines—from continental buffets to Indian, Thai, French, barbecue, and seafood specialities. The signature restaurant, The Reef, presents freshly caught fish and premium cuts of meat, while the Laguna Bar and Champagne Loft offer panoramic sunset views paired with handcrafted cocktails. Flexible All-Inclusive packages allow guests to tailor their stay to their preferences.

Whether guests choose to unwind in the spa, explore the marine world, enjoy fine dining, or simply bask in the Maldivian sun, each stay at Kuramathi promises moments that endure long after departure.

This latest recognition from Condé Nast Traveler underscores the enduring appeal of Kuramathi Maldives—a place where guests can relax, reconnect, and rediscover the beauty of island living.

Commenting on the award, Bertrand Margerie, General Manager of Kuramathi Maldives, stated: “Kuramathi Maldives – where real nature meets true quality and genuine service. We are incredibly honoured to be recognised by the readers of Condé Nast Traveler. This award is a testament to the hard work of our dedicated team and the unforgettable experiences we strive to create for every guest.”

The 2025 Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards received over 750,000 votes. The Maldives as a destination also achieved the top position in the Top Islands: Readers’ Choice Awards 2025 – Africa & The Indian Ocean category, securing 92.31 per cent of the votes, reaffirming its status as one of the world’s leading island destinations.

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