The Maldives is awarded the “Best Luxury Destination of the Year” by Connoisseur Circle, a popular, luxury publication for the German speaking markets. It is the only German-language magazine that exclusively addresses luxury travelers featuring high-end hotels and exclusive destinations worldwide.

The Connoisseur Circle Hospitality Awards is an initiative by the publication and are among the most prestigious prizes in the international luxury hotel industry, presented for the 9th time this year. Consisting of renowned travel journalists and tourism insiders, a 16-member expert jury applied strict criteria to thoroughly evaluate a total of 27 candidates in 9 categories in which Maldives won under the ‘Best Luxury Destination of the Year’ category.

“We are extremely honored to receive the ‘Best luxury destination of the year’ award from the Connoisseur Circle Hospitality Awards. We are grateful for the recognition we have received for the work undertaken by each and every stakeholder in the Maldives tourism industry”, stated Mr. Thoyyib Mohamed, the Managing Director of Visit Maldives. In addition, Mr. Thoyyib Mohamed remarked upon the successful revival of the Maldivian tourism industry and the ongoing vaccination campaign in the destination.

Furthermore, Visit Maldives is currently conducting a year-long campaign with Connoisseur Circle utilizing a multitude of platforms in both the online and offline channels of the publication in order to promote Maldives as a safe haven and uplift the destination presence in the German luxury market. Over 30,000 consumers are reached through the online channels with 43,500 users on their social media platforms. Additionally, 47,000 copies in Germany, 9,000 copies in Switzerland and 25,000 copies in Austria are circulated reaching many high-income readers.

25,129 visitors from Germany, 9,330 from Switzerland and 5,487 from Austria arrived in Maldives till May 2021. Though these figures are low compared to the figures of 2020 due to ongoing travel restrictions, their market contributions are significant, with Germany holding a market ranking of 3 whereas Switzerland and Austria rank at 11 and 17 respectively.

Visit Maldives works to maintain destination presence and strengthen the Maldivian brand in the German market through a variety of marketing activities. These include several B2B and B2C activities such as joint promotions with Airlines and Tour Operators, destination training and several more collaborations with media and key stakeholders in the market. Visit Maldives also participated in ITB Berlin held this March, one of the leading travel and trade shows in the world. Throughout the 4 day virtual fair, a variety of networking events were carried out to strengthen destination presence and promote the Maldives as a safe haven.

Despite the global pandemic, Maldives has welcomed a total of 555,494 travelers in 2020 and has surpassed a half-million mark till date. Amongst the many activities planned for the remainder of the year includes, social media campaigns, joint marketing campaigns with global stakeholders, familiarization trips and visibility campaigns. Several marketing activities and strategies have also been shifted to digital platforms in order to promote the destination whilst adapting to the evolving situation.