- Guesthouse sector must be regulated
- Opportunities for sector in the Maldives
- Biggest issue is employees
"When Guesthouse business began in 2010, people did not anticipate the market would grow to this level," Ahmed Naseer, one of the first individuals to start guesthouse businesses in inhabited islands said.
Since then, the sector had rapidly evolved, from its humble beginnings in a handful of islands to a booming sector, boasting around 300 properties across the country. The island of Maafushi in Kaafu Atoll is a hub for Guesthouse tourism. Forty-five guesthouses are located in the islands, with around 700 guests in the island at any given time. This is around 700 beds. The island contributes US$ 1 million annually to the state. The island is home to multi million dollar investments.
Naseer, who is also the CEO of CMDA, says the guesthouse business now has become a business that benefits the whole tourism sector.
"Guests in resorts makes bookings in Maafushi guesthouses. This is a complementary effect rather than a direct competition. For example, guests in Maafushi, visit Biyaadhoo for a spa treatment, water sport. Biyaadhoo can be described as a three star property. Guests go to Anatara too. So this benefits the whole sector," Naseer said.
Though the industry benefits tourism sector now, Naseer said they had encountered many difficulties when they first started out.
"First it was a huge challenge. Then many did not believe that guesthouse industry can be such a successful one. When [we] first started marketing Maafushi, travel agents did not collaborate, as it was new and untested," Naseer said.
He said as guesthouses were run in individual homes, agents did not even want to sell rooms.
"When they looked at tour groups, like Chinese, they comes in groups. Then we did not have even 10 rooms. So we could not cater to them," Naseer said.
"Back then it was not possible to give guests a spa visit in resorts. But now its completely changed. Now they extend invitations to us. Major hardware companies call us everyday to drum up business. Now nearby resorts offer tours," Naseer said.
Now, Naseer says the sector had proven that there were many opportunities, stating that "there were businesses opportunities in the sector".
He stressed that while we talked about the successes of the sector, we have to place in strong policies to regulate and develop the sector in a sustainable manner.
"When we talk of the success stories of guesthouse businesses, we have to understand that there will be issues in tourists in inhabited islands. But we've not yet reached a dialogue on how we can tackle these issues. There are significant challenges in security and disaster management. Strong policies are needed," Naseer said.
Naseer highlighted the lack of skilled employees for the sector as a significant challenge to the sector.
"Tourism sector requires talented individuals. Guesthouses are in small islands, so there are not many people. Then we have to bring in expatriates for the jobs. We first employed locals in Maafushi. But that halted when our properties expanded. This is a serious issue,"
Guesthouse business is the fastest growing business in the country, with the sector gearing to bring in 500,000 tourists by 2020.
