FEATURE LUXURY HOLIDAYS IN THE INDIAN OCEAN
JESSICA ANDREWS Sales Consultant, Abercrombie & Kent “Sri Lanka is the hot
ticket right now, as a versatile and extremely good-value destination. Ceylon Tea Trails, four fully-staffed bungalows in a plantation, is fabulous for honeymooners, and exceptional value.”
SHAMIRA KAUMAYA-HATT Commercial Director, Sunset Faraway Holidays “Maldives and the
Seychelles are our best-selling Indian Ocean destinations so far this year, with hotel discounts and great value from exclusive deals. The family programme in the Maldives is key for us and new is the St. Regis in southwest Mauritius.”
DEBRA MARTIN Assistant Retail Manager Carrier Travel, Alderley Edge, Cheshire
“I’ve visited over 15 islands in The Maldives and the range is fantastic, with an island to suit everyone, from polished to rustic to intimate retreats for honeymooners to big resorts with activities for families. The ‘idyllic paradise’ image makes it easy to sell.”
Where To Book it ELEGANT RESORTS – 01244 897518
www.elegantresorts.co.uk An 18-day cruise from Dubai to Mauritius (December 5-22) in a Vista Suite on Silversea’s Silver Wind, calling at Abu Dhabi, Muscat, Oman, India and Male, Maldives, costs from £4,895pp all-inclusive, including economy flights and transfers.
16 May 2012 •
www.sellinglonghaul.com
AMPERSAND TRAVEL – 020 7289 6100
www.ampersandtravel.com A 16-day trip to Sri Lanka (B&B) and the Maldives (all-inclusive) is from £3,799pp. It includes four nights at Sigiriya (Kandalama), three nights in Kandy (Earl’s Regency), one night in Negombo (The Beach) in Sri Lanka and six nights in the Maldives (Constance Moofushi). Also included are flights with Sri Lankan Airlines, car and driver in Sri Lanka and Maldives seaplane transfers.
EMIRATES TOURS – 020 7590 1450
www.emiratestours.co.uk Seven nights for the price of five are available at Banyan Tree, Seychelles, priced from £2,599pp, a £1,110 saving per couple. The deal includes accommodation in a Hillside Pool Villa with breakfast, flights with Emirates from Gatwick and transfers. Bookings by May 31 for travel up to July 15.
KUONI – 01306 747008
www.kuoni.co.uk Seven nights’ half-board at Long Beach, Mauritius, in a standard sea view room is from £1,503pp, based on two sharing in July, flights with British Airways from Gatwick and group transfers.
Room Report The Maldives has seen a spate of new openings in the last few months. The 100-villa Dusit Thani Maldives is surrounded by a 360-degree coral reef with the Maldives’ largest swimming pool. NIYAMA by Per AQUUM has the world’s first underwater nightclub, 24-hour spa and 87 mostly pool villas. Viceroy Maldives has 61 spacious pool villas and kids zone. Residence
Maldives has 94 traditional-style villas with private butlers and a Clarins spa. Banyan Tree’s 50-suite boutique
resort Angsana Balaclava has opened in Turtle Bay, northwest Mauritius. The prestigious St Regis opens at Le Morne in September, with 174 rooms and three villas, Iridium spa, kids club, cinema and wedding facilities. In Sri Lanka Uga Resorts opens
Jungle Beach this month (May) in Kuchchaveli, Trincomalee, and Uga Bay, next to the new Malu Malu resort, in Passekudah in October. Six Senses Before Galle Resort and Spa in Ahungalla and the semi-tented Six Senses Meeraladuaa on a nearby island are due to open in 2012. Shangri-La Hambantota Resort and Spa is due to open in 2014.
Who Flies There: Direct: BRITISH AIRWAYS – 0906 706 0010;
www.batraveltrade.com (Maldives, Mauritius) AIR MAURITIUS – 020 8834 5800
www.airmauritius.com (Mauritius direct and via Mauritius to Sri Lanka) SRI LANKAN AIRLINES – 020 8238 2001
www.srilankan.com (Sri Lanka direct or via Colombo to Maldives) Via Middle East: ETIHAD AIRWAYS – 020 3450 7300;
www.etihadairways.com (via Abu Dhabi to Seychelles, Maldives and Sri Lanka) EMIRATES – 0844 800 2777
www.emiratesagents.com (via Dubai to Seychelles, Maldives, Mauritius and Sri Lanka) QATAR AIRWAYS – 0870 389 8090
www.qatarairways.com (via Doha to Seychelles, Maldives and Sri Lanka) OMAN AIR – 0844 482 2309
www.omanair.com (Maldives via Oman) •
BLOWING THE BUDGET BY AMANDA STATHAM Travel Editor, You & Your Wedding
˝The Maldives is the Indian Ocean's most popular honeymoon destination, mostly due to the exclusivity of one resort per island. Fish floated by while I had a fantastic ayurvedic treatment at LIME, the underwater spa at Huvafen Fushi Maldives. ˝Dining in the pool, lit by fibre optics, is
like sitting in starlight. I loved the sunset cruise, sipping Champagne on scatter cushions in a traditional wooden Dhoni and the underground wine cave. I liked the 'no news, no shoes' philosophy at Soneva Gili, which is traditional, rustic, laid-back Maldives. ˝You hand over your shoes on the row
boat over to ultra-private Crusoe Residences, made of wood and thatch, which feel very authentic. Its blow-the-budget Private Reserve, one of the largest in the Indian Ocean, is really special, with its own spa, bathtub built over coral gardens and a slide into the sea.˝
Three contrasting faces of the Indian Ocean, from left: The Residence in Mauritius, the Soneva Gili Private Reserve in the Maldives and tea pickers in Sri Lanka
Selling Seychelles?
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