MACL Named Official Aviation Partner for World Travel Awards Maldives 2026

Visit Maldives Corporation has named Maldives Airports Company Limited as the official aviation partner for the World Travel Awards Asia, Oceania and Indian Ocean 2026. VMC published the announcement on 20 August 2026.

Aishath Shirany Nasir, Manager of Business Development at VMC, signed the agreement with Nashaya Abdul Wahid, General Manager of Air Service Development at MACL. As part of the deal, MACL will provide branding and promotional space at Velana International Airport in the run up to the ceremony.

The gala takes place on 27 September at Crossroads Maldives, the multi island resort a 15 minute boat ride from the airport. The date lines up with World Tourism Day.

MACL called the partnership a chance to put the Maldives in front of a global audience and to give arriving passengers a stronger welcome at Velana. VMC has spent the past several weeks lining up a run of local partners for the ceremony. Ooredoo Maldives came on as digital partner, Jalboot as transport partner, STO Energy as energy partner, and national carrier Maldivian as local airline partner. MACL's role as aviation partner adds the airport itself to that list, covering the gap between the runway and the gala floor.

The World Travel Awards has run regional and global ceremonies for over three decades, and this year's Asia, Oceania and Indian Ocean leg puts the Maldives on the map as host destination rather than just a nominee. For the tourism industry here, that distinction matters. Resorts, airlines and DMCs across the region will be in Male for the ceremony, and VMC gets a home turf platform to make its case to them directly.

What happens next is straightforward. Expect more partner names to roll out over the coming weeks as VMC finishes lining up the ceremony's logistics, with the event itself likely to bring a fresh wave of coverage once nominees and category winners are confirmed closer to 27 September.