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Vacations Expo 2018 kicks off with 24 exhibitors

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Vacations Expo 2018 kicked off Thursday with 24 exhibitors.

The annual expo, organised by leading local event management company Highrise, was inaugurated by UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Maldives Shoko Noda. Top officials from Highrise and the travel industry attended the ceremony held Thursday afternoon.

The entrance free expo is being be held till the end of Saturday at the National Art Gallery in capital Male. It is open for public from 2-6pm and from 8-11pm on Thursday and Saturday, and from 4-6pm and from 8-11pm on Friday.

Twenty-four exhibitors have participated at the expo, including Thailand Tourism, Malaysia Tourism, Singapore Tourism, and Hotels and Restaurants Association Bhutan. Local and regional travel agencies and tour operators such as Inner Maldives Holidays, Ace Aviation Services, Travel Connections Maldives, Tripverin, Maldives Hajj Corporation, Al Manasik Maldives, Moodhu Holidays, Tropical Discoveries Sri Lanka as well as local guesthouses, including Airport Beach Hotel, Divers Lodge, Koka Villa, Araamu Holidays and Spa, Velana Hotels, Dhigurah Retreat Beach, and Kaani Hotels have also exhibited at the expo.

Bangkok Hospital, Allied Insurance Company of the Maldives, local telecom giant Dhiraagu, Atoll Scuba dive centre, TheKitchen restaurant, and Women Entrepreneurs Association of Maldives are also exhibitors.

Visitors have the chance to win lucky draw prizes, including umrah pilgrimage trips from Maldives Hajj Corporation and Al Manasik Maldives, complimentary stays from exhibiting guesthouses, PADI open water dive courses, and attractive insurance packages from Allied Insurance. Air tickets from Bangkok Airways, Singapore Airlines, SriLankan Airlines, AirAsia, Qatar Airways and Scoot as well as special holiday packages to Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Bhutan are also on offer.

For the third year running, the expo is sponsored by Inner Maldives Holidays, with Thailand Tourism and Allied Insurance as co-sponsors. Absolute Security and Advance Protection Private Limited has signed up as the security partner, while Asaree Services serves as setup partner, Monarc as printing partner, UNICA as sounds and lights partner, Dhiraagu as digital communications partner, and TheKitchen as catering partner.

Maldives Insider and The Island Chief have been assigned travel media partners, while local daily Sun Online has signed up as the online media partner and Raajje TV as the official broadcaster.

The annual travel trade show brings together leading travel companies, hoteliers, airlines, tour operators, travel agents, online travel companies, liveaboards, cruises, dive operators and other travel marketers under one roof. Exhibitors can display various attractive travel packages and services.

The expo’s organiser Highrise has successfully delivered several local and international events, including Maldives Travel Awards, Maldives Film Awards, Maldives Living Expo and Sounds of Maldives.

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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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