Upon receiving the award, the Ministry of Tourism tweeted that the Winning Worlds Leading Destination award endorses Maldives tourism success.
Winning World's Leading Destination award endorses #Maldives tourism success. It reflects sound policies of HEP @ibusolih and his team; product and service excellence by tourism industry partners; and promotion of @visitmaldives by private sector and MMPRC.
— Ministry of Tourism (@MoTmv) November 28, 2020
Congratulations! pic.twitter.com/qXuOIAREf7
Speaking on behalf of Visit Maldives, the Managing Director, Mr. Thoyyib Mohamed, expressed his sincere appreciation and gratitude to everyone who voted for the Maldives and the tourism industry stakeholders. He stated, “We are beyond thrilled to receive the Worlds Leading Destination award for the first time in the history of Maldives. This prestigious award means a lot to the Maldives, especially as we achieved this during these difficult times. Thank you to everyone who voted for us. And thank you to the travel industry partners for the immense work carried out to accomplish this. I would like to thank His Excellency President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih for the support and close guidance especially in the recovery process of the nation and the tourism industry”.
Upon receiving the award, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih tweeted stating that despite Covid-19, the award is the result of the hard work of the entire tourism industry to make the Maldives safe and welcoming to visitors.
Very happy that Maldives won the World’s Leading Destination at this year’s #WorldTravelAwards. Despite COVID-19, the award is the result of the hard work of the entire tourism industry to make Maldives safe and welcoming to visitors. My heartfelt congratulations to all.
— Ibrahim Mohamed Solih (@ibusolih) November 28, 2020
Meanwhile, Minister of Tourism, Abdulla Mausoom has tweeted stating that a lot of people played an important role in the Maldives winning the Worlds Leading Destination award.
HEP @ibusolih's bold decision to reopen borders; strive of travel/tourism partners, employees; @HPA_MV @MoHmv @ImmigrationMV @MACLmedia local councils, related authorities n media played an important role in #Maldives win the World's Leading Destination Award. Congratulations! https://t.co/7t9dXywZ6q
— Abdulla Mausoom (@Mausoom_Maus) November 28, 2020
The Maldives competed in the category of World Travel Awards with 22 other destinations including Dubai, Malaysia, Spain, Mauritius, and Sri Lanka. The Maldives has also won 4 awards in the Indian Ocean category at World Travel Awards, attesting to this. These categories are Indian Ocean’s Leading Beach Destination 2020, Indian Ocean’s Leading Cruise Destination 2020, Indian Ocean’s Leading Destination 2020, and Indian Ocean’s Leading Dive Destination 2020.
Despite the challenges over the course of the year, this accomplishment is a remarkable testament to the love of tourists from around the world, as well as the massive effort and continuous contribution made by each and every one of the stakeholders in order to revive and restore the industry in the Maldives.
World Travel Awards, established in 1993, is the most prestigious honors program in the global travel and tourism industry recognized globally as the ultimate hallmark of industry excellence.
