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MMPRC takes part in prominent Middle Eastern travel event QBLT Congress; prepares for Dubai Roadshow, MALT Congress

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Maldives Marketing & Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC / Visit Maldives) has taken part in the Qatar Business & Luxury Travel (QBLT) Congress and is gearing up for participation in Meetings Arabia & Luxury Travel (MALT) Congress 2022.

QBLT Congress was held on 28th March in Qatar and MALT Congress 2022 will be held from 30th to 31st March in Dubai. Coinciding with both events, Visit Maldives is conducting a Maldives Roadshow in Dubai on 29th March 2022.

During these events, Visit Maldives aims to maintain our destination presence and promote the Maldives as the world’s leading destination in the Middle East market alongside industry partners. It comes under a new short term strategy devised to address the evolving geopolitical climate in the world following the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war. With Russia and CIS topping the arrivals figures in recent years, the strategy is aimed at mitigating the potential negative impact on arrival numbers from this region by re-strategising marketing activities in selected markets to minimise the potential adverse effects on the Maldives tourism industry and the nation’s economy.

QBLT Congress is a luxury closed-door, boutique congress that brings together 50 of the biggest outbound travel buyers of MICE tourism from across Qatar. Tourism boards, hotels and resorts, DMC’s and other international luxury travel suppliers take part in the one-day intensive B2B event. During the event, Visit Maldives had the fantastic opportunity to promote the Maldives as an up-and-coming MICE destination, emphasising that the Maldives is seeking to redefine MICE.

The Visit Maldives team at Qatar met with the Lead Marketing Team from Qatar Airways at the Airline Headquarters to discuss existing and new opportunities, and held talks on different ways to strengthen the joint-marketing efforts and collaborating towards market growth and recovery.

After concluding participation in the QBLT Congress, Visit Maldives will hold a special roadshow in Dubai under the theme ‘Connect with Maldives – Your Safe Haven’, alongside 08 industry partners. During the roadshow, Visit Maldives and industry partners will showcase a destination presentation highlighting the products, experiences, and latest travel guidelines on Maldives. The safety provided by the scattered geography of the Maldives will also be highlighted during the roadshow. The presentation will be followed by a productive night of networking and building new business relations, and a special raffle will be conducted awarding a free holiday in the Maldives.

Visit Maldives will conclude the Middle East journey at MALT Congress 2022. The MALT Congress provides the opportunity for industry partners to connect, converse, and collaborate with regional buyers through pre-arranged one to one business appointments. The exciting exhibition also features expert sessions on lessons learnt in 2021 and the future of the tourism industry.

Last year, Maldives welcomed 91,413 tourists to the country from the Middle East market with Saudi Arabia ranked as the top 7th market to Maldives. This year until January, the country has recorded 5,103 arrivals from the Middle East market. MMPRC has planned several activities targeting the Middle East market under the effort to maintain destination visibility. This includes joint-marketing campaigns, webinars, participation in major fairs and exhibitions, roadshows, and hosting familiarisation trips.

As the company responsible for marketing the Maldives as a destination abroad, MMPRC carried out 260 different marketing activities in 22 global markets last year, including fairs, roadshows, familiarisation trips, marketing campaigns, webinars, and interviews.

The greatest testament to the success of these activities came late last year, as the Maldives secured the title of ‘World’s Leading Destination’ (among several other accolades) at the 2021 World Travel Awards, globally recognised as the hallmark of industry excellence. This is the second consecutive year that the Maldives had successfully earned this prestigious title, a shining testimony of the trust placed in the ‘magic of Maldivian hospitality’ by travellers from all over the globe.

This year also celebrates an exceptional year to visit the Maldives – the Golden Jubilee celebration of tourism in the Maldives kicked off earlier last year with plans to conduct new and exciting activities throughout the year. MMPRC has planned over 60 in-person events for the year 2022, including 11 fairs, roadshows and events scheduled for just the first quarter.

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Feydhoo Hall opens at dusitD2 Feydhoo Maldives as new event space

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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.

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BBM expands retail presence with new Hulhumalé outlet

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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.

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Ataraxis Grand & Spa hosts integrated work-and-dive corporate retreat in Fuvahmulah

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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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