Air Italy has announced plans to operate non-stop service to Maldives as part of its winter 2019/20 schedule.
Operating from its hub at Milan Malpensa Airport, the Milan-Male route will be served three times a week on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.
“Starting today, our winter network is now on sale, and we are delighted to be offering the Maldives, Zanzibar, Tenerife and Mombasa which are all fabulous winter destinations and have been perennially popular with our Italian customers during winter,” Rossen Dimitrov, Chief Operating Officer of Air Italy, was quoted in a statement, as saying.
On Air Italy’s flights to the Maldives, Business Class passengers will benefit from the airline’s completely new on-board business product that was first revealed on the inaugural Milan-Los Angeles flight. Featuring an entirely new tableware, in-flight dining menus, cutlery and chinaware that have all been specially crafted to meet travellers’ expectations, Air Italy’s Business Class passengers can also take advantage of the new dine-on-demand service.
“Complementing our new tableware and crockery, we have also launched our new dine-on-demand service, meaning our Business Class customers can select from our extensive à la carte menu at any time, and in any order, to create their own unique dining experience – all of which delivers yet again on our brand promise as we help our customers to – Imagine The World Differently,” Dimitrov said.
Air Italy’s new long-haul Airbus A330-200 offers up to 24 seats in the exclusive Business Class cabin making it possible to fly with maximum comfort in fully lie-flat seats with WiFi service, an extensive inflight entertainment service and the personalised attention from our on-board staff.
The Economy Class cabin with 228 seats also provides Air Italy’s guests with highly personalised service, WiFi and a wide selection of entertainment.
Italy’s flagship carrier Alitalia also operates flights to the Maldives during the winter season, connecting Rome and Male via a three times weekly direct service.
Italy ranks fourth amongst the source markets for Maldives tourism, after China, Germany and the UK, and ahead of much more populated countries such as India, Russia and the US. The average stay for Italians, who were the first to spot the potential of tourism in the pristine atolls over four decades ago, in the Maldives is between four and 11 nights.
In 2018, 105,297 Italians visited the Maldives — an increase of 18.5 per cent over the 88,867 in the previous year. That growth is set to continue this year as well, as arrivals from Italy increased by 27.4 per cent in the first three months of the year to reach 52,848 compared to the 41,489 in the January-March 2018 period.