Bahrain’s flag carrier, Gulf Air is to resume flights to Maldives from 12th December 2020 onwards.Gulf Air operated its first airline to Maldives during October 2019.

They will be operating two weekly flights to and from Velena International Airport (VIA) on their new Airbus 321neoLR, which is capable of seating 150 passengers in its economy class and 16 on flat-bed seats on its Falcon Gold class.

Since the reopening of borders on 15th July in Maldives, several international airlines have resumed flights, including Qatar Airways, Emirates, Aeroflot, Air India, Indigo and more. Over 18 airlines are expected to be flying to and from Maldives by the end of November.

The reopening of borders came with stringent safety measures in place to ensure the safety of both tourists and staff. Tourists are required to fill an online health declaration form within 24 hours prior to departure and also present a negative COVID-19 test, conducted 96 hours prior to departure to the Maldives. Resorts and liveaboards resumed operations in July, simultaneously with the reopening, whereas guest houses opened up for tourists again on 15th October.

Maldives has also introduced the first COVID-19 travel insurance in the country, Allied Inbound, which covers medical charges, isolation facility charges, emergency medical transportation charges and interment charges following a positive diagnosis for COVID-19 during their stay in the country.  

Prior to the lockdown on 27th March, Maldives observed 382, 760 tourist arrivals. Since the reopening of borders, there has been a steady rise in the arrival rates. Up until now, there have been over 37,000 arrivals.