Heritance Aarah has celebrated its first anniversary.

Aitken Spence Hotels, a subsidiary of Sri Lankan blue-chip conglomerate Aitken Spence PLC, took its premier brand Heritance beyond the shores of Sri Lanka for the first time, with the introduction of Heritance Aarah in the Maldives on March 14, 2019.

“We’re able to achieve many things during this short time. We will continue to be the market leader in Premier All-inclusive segment in Maldives. Thank you everyone who supported us during the last 365 days,” Suresh Dissanayake, Assistant Vice President – Sales and Marketing at Aitken Spence Hotels Maldives, said.

Heritance Aarah embraces the brand promise of the Heritance chain of hotels, where tradition is alive. The property is nestled in an island in Raa atoll, just a 40-minute seaplane ride away from the Maldives’ main Velana International Airport.

With five successful Heritance properties in Sri Lanka, each boasting of inimitable stories of culture merging with hospitality and comfort, the move to open this latest resort came with the expansion plans of Aitken Spence Hotels.

Akin to the Heritance properties in Sri Lanka, each strategically designed in exciting locations, the island of Aarah, on which the resort lies, is home to a large lagoon and reef, welcoming guests to a tropical tapestry of the perpetual paradise that is Maldives.

Operating as a premier all-inclusive resort, Heritance Aarah consists of 150 villas including 26 intimate luxury duplex ocean suites, 56 sunset ocean villas and 68 land villas ranging from beach villas to pool beach villas, family beach villas and family pool beach villas. Designed to inspire and custom-built to immerse guests in the scenic sights and soothing sounds of the ocean surrounding the island, Heritance Aarah is adorned with earthly hues and vibrant blues.

Guests can indulge in the many charms of the island at a poolside bar and an open-air rooftop venue while ocean suite guests can enjoy a more exclusive space with three separate bars. With nine outlets for guests to experience diverse cuisines, the culinary culture unfolded at the resort is intended to promote exclusive gastronomic delights from around the world. The six restaurants offer a wide range of flavours from Asia, Europe, Middle East to Latin America.

The award-winning F&B team of Heritance Aarah has illustrated their exceptional culinary skills, clinching multiple gold medals at several local and international culinary competitions.

Accentuating this impressive offering are the the overwater infinity pool and the medi-spa equipped to cater to the rising demand in the wellness segment with state-of-the-art treatments and equipment.

The spa, with six treatment rooms set over the lagoon with views of the eastern coast of the island, provides a range of high-end wellness and pampering treatments, salon services, beauty treatments and programmes. From weight loss to anti-aging treatments, massage therapy to body care, facial care to revitalisation programmes, Heritance Aarah is set to become a destination for those pursuing wellness combined with leisure and luxury.

With variety being the spice of life, the resort hosts a dive and water sports centre, a range of excursions and adventures, an interactive and engaging kids club, and traditional local activities to present a unique luxury holiday experience to guests.

Keeping with the brand promise of Heritance to promote culture and tradition at the forefront, the resort unveiled an exciting calendar of daily activities including coconut leaf art workshops, cookery demonstrations for traditional sweets and dishes, traditional Maldivian bodu beru drumming and a memorable local island dinner.

The resort also follows the ingrained ethos of sustainability and ethical commitments of the Aitken Spence Hotels group.

In addition to being the first LEED Gold certified resort in the Maldives, Heritance Aarah has drawn the best practices from the group and has successfully implemented many an initiative which includes (but not limited to) reduction of single use plastic, coral reef restoration and sustainable sourcing with close integration with local communities.

Heritance Aarah opened its doors with a distinctive experience, offering guests a truly one of a kind holiday.

Aitken Spence Hotels also operates the Adaaran Resorts Maldives’ portfolio of properties in the Maldives. The well-established Adaaran Resorts include the stunning Adaaran Prestige Vadoo, Adaaran Select Meedhupparu, Adaaran Club Rannalhi and Adaaran Select Hudhuranfushi.

Cover photo: The first guests that visited Heritance Aarah a year ago.