LUXURY five-star boutique resort Baros Maldives, voted the world’s fifth most romantic hotel and the best hotel in the Maldives by Trip Advisor, recently appointed Maldivian-born resort manager Ahmed Shuhan.
Speaking about true Maldivian hospitality, Shuhan says: “Traditionally, Maldivians have always welcomed visitors to our islands. Our hospitality is sincere and caring. This is why we see guests rate our services very highly at Baros Maldives- we deliver simple Maldivian hospitality. The smile we give our guests is genuine; we think of our guests by name, not villa number. We like making sure that every guest is satisfied and each of us is happy to do whatever is required to take great care of guests’ needs.”
“In addition I would like to bring Baros Maldives to the next level of hospitality excellence. Last year, Baros was named the World’s Most Romantic Resort at the World Travel Awards and so far in 2013 we have been named the Number One Luxury Resort in the Maldives, Number eight in the Best Resorts in the World and, most recently, fifth in the Top 25 Hotels for Romance in the Travellers’ Choice Awards by Trip Advisor. These are not only honours recognising what is special about Baros, but also inspire us to maintain and exceed the highest level of service,” he added.
Shuhan, who was previously executive assistant manager at the resort, is confident that positively one can overcome any challenge. “We have noticed over the last few years that guests are more demanding in their search for an exceptional holiday experience. We always try to be a step ahead so that we are not only fulfilling their expectations, but exceeding them.”
Baros Maldives was only the third resort to open in the Maldives, 40 years ago, although the resort was completely re-built in 2005. Now there are more than 100 resorts, following a surge in the five-star sector in the past year or so. With the amount of resorts and locations, guests have more choice since the Maldives now offers a variety of high-standard luxury, accommodation and services rarely found elsewhere in the world.
“As a Maldivian owned and run resort, we uniquely offer the essence of the Maldives in the warmth of genuine Maldivian hospitality by our experienced Maldivian staff, unmatched by international resorts. Baros also offers gourmet dining, a stunning house reef and amazing diving in a lush island ambience, helping us to maintain our position as one of the leading resorts in the Maldives,”added Shuhan.
From the Middle East, the resort has seen an increase in arrivals due to a number of reasons. Easy accessibility means GCC guests can come over for a weekend, for a short holiday or for a quick romantic getaway.
“Our GCC guests also enjoy the personalised luxury and privacy we offer, as well as the amazing diving opportunities. The improvement in flight accessibility is another great positive for the GCC market.”
“We take into consideration the needs and preferences of the Middle East market and have implemented a number of services to cater to them. These include placing prayer mats in their Villa, providing the directions to Mecca, adding Middle Eastern cuisine and beverages to our food and beverage menu, and ensuring they can enjoy shisha in the Palm Garden. We also have Villas, such as the Baros Residence, that offer upmost luxury and privacy, appealing to the preferences of our Middle Eastern guests,” he added.
The resort recently launched a programme for GCC diving enthusiasts offering them a diving and snorkelling programme that allows divers of all levels to design their own diving schedule. The ‘Diving by Design’ programme offers guests looking for their next diving adventure one of the most personalised and unique diving experiences when staying at Baros Maldives.
Guests can select over 30 world-class dive spots, within a boat ride from the resort. Dive options include an orientation dive, refresher dive, boat diving, house reef diving, night diving, nitrox diving, PADI diving and private diving. Divers enjoy their ‘Diving by Design’ programme on-board their own private 15 m luxury boat with all comforts provided, including refreshments and lunch, if desired.
The Divers Baros Maldives team also work in close relationship with the resort’s Marine Centre and its resident Marine Biologist. One of the centre’s main objectives is sustaining and conserving the underwater environment around the island by implementing environmentally friendly guidelines to protect the marine environment. Divers Baros was the first resort EcoDive Centre in the Maldives, enabling guests to enjoy a personalised diving adventure while knowing they are participating in preserving the captivating natural environment of tropical coral reefs.
“The Maldives continues to remain as a very attractive destination for high-end luxury experiences and attracts young and wealthy travellers from many markets. We will see how this market develops over the next few years but, as always, we will be anticipating guests’ needs ahead of time to ensure we meet their requirements, whether our guests come from the Middle East, Europe, or the Bric countries,” he concluded.