A special Indian delegation has begun to discuss measures to boost the tourism link between the Maldives and India.
The delegation includes prominent executives from Indian travel agencies, tour operators, and travel journalists, as well as OTM Mumbai personnel.
The High Commission of India in Maldives, in conjunction with the Ministry of Tourism and the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC), hosted a tourism roundtable discussion with the delegation.
The meeting, titled “Connect to Travel,” was held on Tuesday at Hotel Jen and was attended by top stakeholders from the Maldivian tourism sector.
Keynote speakers of the event were Tourism Minister Abdulla Mausoom, Indian High Commissioner to the Maldives Sunjay Sudir, and MMPRC Managing Director Thoyyib Mohamed.
In addition, Sanjeev Agarwal, CEO of OTM Mumbai, and Ishan Muneer, Vice President of IndiGo, also spoke during the meeting.
The main objective of the meeting is to enhance tourism connections between India and the Maldives. This includes expanding Maldivian tourism to encompass luxury, MICE, guesthouses, and film production.
Following the event’s end, representatives from India will visit local islands to further strengthen India-Maldives tourism relations.
IndiGo Airlines and Trans Maldivian Airways (TMA) are the Indian delegation’s travel partners for this event.
IndiGo offers 35 weekly flights from six Indian cities to the Maldives, making it the largest airline connecting India and the Maldives.
Since the implementation of an air corridor agreement between India and the Maldives last year, India has been the Maldives’ main tourism market. Over 200,000 Indian tourists visited the Maldives in the first nine months of this year, more than in the entire year of 2019.