Flydubai to resume flights to the Maldives in October

The low-cost airline last operated to the Indian Ocean holiday hot spot in 2018

Flydubai will operate four flights per week from Dubai to the Maldives from October 27. Courtesy Radisson Blu Resort Maldives

Flydubai is resuming flights to the Maldives from next month.

The low-cost airline will commence its Dubai to Male route from October 29. It will operate four times per week to the Maldivian capital, with economy and business-class fares available.

A one-way flight will take a little over four hours and tickets in economy cost from Dh1,595. Outbound flights will depart Dubai on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 10.35am. Return flights will leave Velana International Airport in Male at 11.30pm (local time).

Flydubai first flew from Dubai to the Maldives in 2013. It operated the service again in 2018. The airline said popular demand among travellers is its reason for reinstating the route this year.

A rising demand for travel

"We continue to see signs of recovery as more countries start to lift restrictions on international travel. Working together, all the stakeholders in the travel industry have a role to play to safeguard travel in this new environment, enabling more people to travel confidently," said Ghaith Al Ghaith, chief executive of Flydubai.

"We remain agile in our operations and committed to gradually adding more flights to further support the flow of trade and tourism around the region as we look ahead to this new way of travel in the months to come."

Tourists welcome

The Maldives began to welcome tourists back earlier this year. It is one of the few destinations in the world that is open to travellers of any nationality. Initially, the archipelago opened without the need for holidaymakers to obtain negative Covid-19 tests, but this has now been updated. All tourists to the Maldives must present a negative PCR test on arrival at Velana International Airport.

The test must have been taken in the past 72 hours.

All of the 156 resort islands in the Maldives are also taking protective measures to help shield travellers from the virus.

With the addition of these flights, Flydubai is now operating to 40 destinations across Africa, Central Asia, Europe, the Indian Subcontinent and the Middle East.

This month, Flydubai announced it was giving all passengers free Covid-19 medical cover when taking a Flydubai flight between now and Monday, November 30. The airline has also implemented several in-flight safety measures to help keep passengers safe when flying.