Business
Maldives tourist arrivals post 8.1 percent growth in July
Maldives on Thursday reported an increase of 8.1 percent in tourist arrivals in July, as the destination continues to recover from a new wave of domestic political turmoil that rocked the island nation early this year.
Maldives attracted a wave of bad publicity following the recent declaration of a state of emergency, which ended in March. However, the political turmoil was strictly restricted to the capital city, away from the resorts and local islands where holidaymakers stay in.
The political turmoil led to rare declines of 0.1 percent and 0.6 percent in tourist arrivals in April and May respectively before rebounding in June with a 10 percent growth.
Official figures for the month of July released by the tourism ministry show that a total of 122,332 tourists visited the Maldives during the month — an 8.1 percent increase over the 113,175 tourists in July 2017.
Europe, the largest regional source market, posted an overall growth of 12.8 percent over July 2017, as arrivals increased to 47,603 from 42,192.
The UK, which is the single biggest European source market, made a gain of 9.3 percent, while several other major European markets such as Italy, France and Spain also posted gains of 25.6 percent, 35.8 percent and 21.2 percent respectively. Germany also rebounded from its rare decline of 23.3 percent in June, as the second most important European source market posted a 1.5 percent growth in arrivals in July.
Russian travellers continued to show their appetite for the Maldives, as arrival numbers jumped 5.5 percent in July to reach 4,370 from 4,144 in July 2017. This strong performance last month translated into an impressive growth of 23 percent in arrivals from Russia for the past seven months of the year.
Arrivals from Asia, the second largest regional source market, also increased 6.5 percent in July.
Arrivals from China once again declined by 3.1 percent to reach 33,227 compared to the 34,276 in July 2017. This decline, which came after declines of 27.5 percent, 28 percent, 27.1 percent and 5.4 percent in March, April, May and June respectively as well as 15.8 percent in January, offset the rare gain in arrival numbers from China in February and led to an 8.6 percent decline in arrivals from the Maldives’ single biggest source market for the January-July period.
Meanwhile, almost all major contributors to Maldives tourism from South East Asia continued to post strong gains in July as well, with arrivals from countries such as Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines increasing by 69.2 percent, 60 percent and 36.9 percent respectively. Arrivals from Singapore, which had been posting weak performances for the past seven months of year, also increased by 8.3 percent in July.
However, arrivals from South Asia, which has become one of the fastest growing source markets, declined by 0.4 percent in July after posting major gains for the past seven months of the year. This rare decline is due to negative growth in arrivals from all South Asian countries except India, which posted an increase of 5.7 percent.
Along with the strong performance in established markets, relatively new markets also continued their upward growth trajectory last month, as arrivals from the Americas were up 0.4 percent and Oceania up 29.4 percent.
Arrivals from the US, which last year secured a place amongst the top 10 contributors to the Maldives tourism industry, increased by 4.8 percent to reach 3,494 last month compared to the 3,334 in July 2017, while the number of visitors from Australia also increased by 32.7 percent. South Africa, which has been on the recovery, also posted an increase of 1.2 percent.
Middle East, which has proven to be a volatile market, recorded a slight gain of 1.5 percent in July — the second consecutive month of growth after a decline of 24.1 percent in May. However, arrivals from several major Middle Eastern countries, including Kuwait, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates posted negative growth of 32.4 percent, 7.1 percent and 14.7 percent respectively. Saudi Arabia (up 8.4 percent) and Qatar (up 811.9 percent) were the only major contributors from Middle East that made gains in arrivals in July.
According to the July statistics, total arrivals for the first seven months of the year increased by 10.1 percent to reach 848,847 compared to the 770,715 in the same period of last year.
In addition to the recent political turmoil, the Maldives is currently experiencing the traditionally low season.
May to November is considered the low tourist season, as these months constitute rainy season in Maldives. Between May and November, the islands boast of wet weather, making it less ideal for tourists to travel and enjoy the tropical environment.
Over the past five years, dozens of uninhabited islands have been leased to local and foreign resort developers. Several international brands have entered into the market, increasing the number of resorts to 120. That number is set to increase as the government has announced the opening of some 20 new resorts over the next two years.
Along with the new resort openings come the challenge of increasing demand from budget travellers who choose guesthouses over luxury resorts that the Maldives is known for. The guesthouse sector has rapidly expanded with over 450 guesthouses in operation today.
The government last year announced new steps to maintain a structured growth in tourism, including a slowdown in leasing islands for resort development and increased marketing efforts in key markets such as China and the Middle East in order to reach an ambitious target of a record 1.5 million tourist arrivals this year.
Business
Feydhoo Hall opens at dusitD2 Feydhoo Maldives as new event space
Dusit International, one of Thailand’s leading hotel and property development companies, has announced the opening of Feydhoo Hall, a landmark event venue at dusitD2 Feydhoo Maldives, redefining the possibilities for meetings, celebrations, and destination events in the Maldives.
Designed to bring scale, flexibility, and creativity to island gatherings, Feydhoo Hall represents a bold step forward in positioning the Maldives as a dynamic destination for conferences, weddings, and large-scale social occasions.
Feydhoo Hall offers a versatile event complex designed to accommodate a wide range of gatherings, from corporate meetings and conferences to weddings and social celebrations.

At its core is the 390 sqm Main Hall, capable of hosting:
- Up to 300 guests in theatre-style setup
- Up to 240 guests for dining and banquet-style events
- Up to 200 guests for cocktail-style receptions
- Up to 144 guests in cluster-round configuration
Enhancing the flexibility of the venue are additional dedicated spaces, including:
- A 110 sqm Veranda Terrace, ideal for welcome receptions, breakout sessions, and pre-event gatherings, accommodating up to 100 guests for cocktail-style events.
- A spacious 1,000 sqm Lawn Space, perfect for large-scale outdoor celebrations, destination weddings, and open-air events, accommodating up to 400 guests for cocktail receptions and up to 350 guests for dining setups.
- The 55 sqm Ekugai Meeting Room, designed for smaller meetings and executive sessions, accommodating up to 30 guests in theatre or dining setup and 24 guests in cluster-round format.
Together, these integrated spaces create a seamless indoor-outdoor event experience, allowing planners to design dynamic and personalised event journeys.
True to the dusitD2 brand’s lifestyle-driven philosophy, Feydhoo Hall introduces a fresh approach to meetings and events — where productivity meets creativity in an inspiring island setting.
The venue offers flexible meeting formats designed to suit different event needs, including:
- Half-Day Meeting Package (4 hours) — ideal for focused sessions, executive meetings, and creative workshops.
- Full-Day Meeting Package (8 hours) — designed for immersive conferences, extended workshops, and large-scale corporate gatherings.
These thoughtfully structured packages provide planners with the flexibility to create impactful and seamless experiences, whether hosting intimate strategy sessions or dynamic full-day events.

Located just seven minutes by speedboat from Velana International Airport, dusitD2 Feydhoo Maldives combines accessibility with vibrant lifestyle energy, offering event planners and guests a rare balance between convenience and tropical escape.
With the introduction of Feydhoo Hall, the resort strengthens its position as a versatile destination — not only for leisure travellers but also for international conferences, creative retreats, luxury weddings, and large-scale social celebrations seeking something refreshingly different in the Maldives.
Business
BBM expands retail presence with new Hulhumalé outlet
Bestbuy Maldives (BBM) opened a new wholesale store in Hulhumalé Phase 2 on Monday.
The outlet is located on the ground floor of Lot 20286, Nirolhu Magu, and is intended to improve access to BBM’s imported goods for residents of Hulhumalé Phase 2 and for businesses operating in the area.
According to the company, the opening forms part of its plan to expand services closer to customers in line with population growth in Hulhumalé.
With the opening of the new store, BBM’s full range of imported and distributed products will be available at the Hulhumalé Phase 2 location. These include consumer goods from international brands such as Lifebuoy, Vaseline and Unilever.
The store will also stock wholesale food products from brands including Daily, Cavin’s and Redman.
BBM has supplied goods to resorts, hotels and retail outlets across the Maldives for several years.
Action
Ataraxis Grand & Spa hosts integrated work-and-dive corporate retreat in Fuvahmulah
Ataraxis Grand & Spa recently hosted a week-long, closed corporate offsite in Fuvahmulah for a US-based artificial intelligence company, highlighting the island’s growing suitability for integrated work-and-experience retreats. The retreat brought a group of 36 international professionals to the property, which was reserved exclusively for the programme.
Designed as a private company offsite, the stay combined structured daily work sessions with guided diving and beginner-friendly surf experiences, creating a balanced format that blended focused collaboration with physical reset.

A notable component of the programme was dive training and certification. During the retreat, 17 participants completed their Open Water certification, while a further six undertook the Advanced Open Water course, with training and dives scheduled alongside work sessions as part of the integrated itinerary.
Throughout the week, participants worked on-site using dedicated shared spaces supported by reliable high-speed internet, allowing meetings, informal collaboration and scheduled activities to take place within a single, uninterrupted environment. This setup enabled teams to move seamlessly between work periods and organised ocean activities without leaving the property.

Fuvahmulah’s natural and operational advantages formed a key part of the retreat’s appeal. As one of the Maldives’ largest inhabited islands, it offers immediate access to pelagic dive sites, internationally recognised shark diving and surf breaks suitable for instruction, alongside the infrastructure required to support extended group stays.

The offsite reflects a growing preference among technology and knowledge-sector teams for small-scale retreats that prioritise concentrated work environments and team cohesion over traditional conference formats. Such programmes typically involve longer stays and higher per-capita spend, aligning with sustainable, quality-driven tourism models.
The retreat also demonstrates how locally operated properties such as Ataraxis Grand & Spa are supporting this shift by delivering unified environments where accommodation, workspaces, connectivity and curated experiences operate as a single programme rather than separate services.

As organisations continue to explore alternative formats for strategy sessions, team resets and creative offsites, Ataraxis Grand & Spa’s experience positions Fuvahmulah as an increasingly viable destination for integrated corporate retreats.
Ataraxis Grand & Spa offers work-and-dive retreat programmes in Fuvahmulah that combine accommodation, dedicated workspaces, high-speed connectivity and organised diving and surfing.

Further information on retreat formats and dive-inclusive stays is available via the Ataraxis Grand & Spa website.
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