In an attempt to revive its tourism sector, the south Asian archipelago of Maldives is offering vaccines to travellers. Here’s all you need to know. By Kumar Shree
While the second wave of the Coronavirus is wreaking havoc, tourism-dependent countries are doing their best to attract travellers by promising utmost safety. Since tourism forms a major part of economic revenue for countries like Maldives, they are introducing all possible measures to ensure a safe environment for those willing to travel to the destination during the current scenario.
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During an interview with CNBC, Maldives’ tourism minister Abdulla Mausoom said, “The main idea of tourism being open is to provide reasonably safe tourism with minimum inconvenience. So, once the country gets vaccinated, then we will move on to ‘3V’ tourism.” The ‘3V’ plan, as mentioned by Mausoom stands for Visit, Vaccinate, Vacation.
Mausoom also said that Maldives has successfully vaccinated 90 per cent of its frontline tourism workers, and nearly half the population has received at least one dose of the vaccine so far. Once Maldives vaccinates all its residents and nationals, the official will begin vaccinating visitors as well.
Several reports also suggest that Maldives welcomed a generous 3,50,000 travellers this year. A large part of this number came from India, which took advantage of the country’s relaxed entry requirements during the current scenario.
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Mausoom also talked about how Maldives is also becoming popular as a workation destination. “Workation — working from the Maldives is now becoming very trendy… You see very rich executives and company executives, come here; and they are based here,” he said during his interview with CNBC.
Currently, Maldives has clearly defined travel guidelines for visitors, which requires them to carry a negative PCR test taken within three days of arrival. Those who are already fully vaccinated can also visit the country.
Related: 4 Things To Know Before Your First Trip To The Maldives
