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The prestigious tropical destination will begin welcoming travellers as soon as July 15

While the global coronavirus pandemic may have shuttered most of those long-awaited travel plans for the year, the Maldives might not be off the table for very much longer.

The hotels and resorts of the Maldives will be reopening to international travellers as soon as next month, so that prestigious getaway might be coming sooner than you think.

“The Maldives relies heavily on the tourism industry as it accounts for the largest foreign exchange earnings, making it the biggest economic contributor in the country,” Visit Maldives said in a press release. “However, it has come to a standstill due to the stringent public health measures taken to curb COVID-19. The tourism industry has been gearing up to restart; it is set to resume in compliance with protective measures, taking into account the safety of tourists and staff working in the industry.”

The guidelines for re-opening the tourism sector, however, are not being taken lightly. Public Health Interventions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and newly implemented operating procedures for travellers arriving into the Maldives will include health declaration cards and heavy exit screening, however, visitors will not be required to procure a health certificate or negative COVID-19 test.

“Tourists [will not be] required to pay an additional fee, produce a certificate or test result indicative of negative status for COVID-19 prior to entry into the Maldives,” Visit the Maldives explained. “For tourists without symptoms, there is no requirement for quarantine either. The guideline will be periodically reviewed based on further developments.”

All resorts and hotels on uninhabited islands will be opening as soon as July 15, however hotels on inhabited islands aren’t scheduled to open until two weeks later, on August 1.

For more opening dates and information on travelling to the Maldives this summer, be sure to visit the official Visit Maldives website.

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