Shangri-La Villingili Resort and Spa, Maldives revealed its decision to temporarily discontinue operations.
In a notice issued to employees, Rahim Flynn, General Manager for Shangri-La's Villingili property, asserted the difficulty of continuing operations amid the economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on Maldives' tourism industry.
As a measure to prevent further spread of the virus, Shangri-La Villingili ceased accepting reservations between April 1 and June 30, which closely aligns with the Maldivian government's halt on issuing on-arrival visas for tourist from March 27.
Per the notice, Shangri-La Villingili will move to dismiss the majority of workers employed on the resort, however, the company plans to retain a minimal number of staff members to help maintain the property.
Shangri-La Villingili's human resource department is tasked with conducting all necessary transactions as well as overseeing procedures pertaining to the aforementioned decisions.
The temporary closure was finalised following discussions between the resort's management and the Addu City Council.
Located within a five-minute speedboat ride from Gan International Airport, Shangri-La Vilingili Resort and Spa boasts a total of 132 villas. Established in 2008, Shangri-La Villingili is the largest resort in Maldives, spanning across 54 hectares.
In addition to Shangri-La Vilingili, Canareef Resort Maldives and South Palm Resort Maldives are also located in the southernmost atoll of Addu.
Despite the reopening of borders on June 15, the inflow of tourists to Maldives remains significantly below pre-COVID figures, with total tourist arrivals in July representing a mere 1.3 percent of 2019 records for the same period.
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