Maldives has been recognised as the islands with the best places to stay at the Condé Nast Traveller’s 2017 Readers’ Travel Awards, reaffirming its position as one the most preferred holiday destinations in the world.
The annual awards ceremony was held at the Ham Yard Hotel in central London on Monday. The prestigious award was accepted by the Maldives Ambassador to the UK Ahmed Shiaan.
“We are incredibly honoured that the readers of Condé Nast Traveller have once again chosen the Maldives as best islands for places to stay,” Shiaan was quoted as saying, in a statement issued by the Maldives’ main tourism promotion body Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC).
“We have worked hard to remain the world standard in holiday luxury, and it’s wonderful to see that travellers appreciate how much our nation has to offer.”
Tourism minister Moosa Zameer also hailed the win.
“The United Kingdom is a crucial part of the Maldives’ tourism industry, and we are thrilled to receive this award in one of our most important markets. The Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation and the Maldives Embassy in London have worked hard to promote our islands to the British people, and this achievement is a reflection of that effort. It’s exciting to see that we are still one the world’s favourite holiday destinations,” he said.
Several resorts in the Maldives were also recognised at the 2017 Readers’ Travel Awards, appearing in the top ten lists of Best Holiday Hotels and Best Hotel Spas.
Condé Nast Traveller is one of the UK’s leading luxury travel magazines, with a following of 1.3 million. Its Reader’s Travel Awards, voted for by the magazine’s readers, are amongst the most widely respected recognitions in the travel industry.
Britain is one of the major source markets for the Maldives tourism industry, as more than 100,000 British travellers visited the Maldives last year — a 9.8 percent increase from the year before. That growth has continued this year, as 51,737 Brits visited the Maldives in the first six months of the year — a 0.4 percent increase from the 51,536 in the same period of last year.