(Seychelles News Agency) - Maia Luxury Resort & Spa has been certified with the Seychelles Sustainable Tourism Label as a responsible hotel with well- established sustainability practices.

The resort received the certification from the Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports & Marine, Didier Dogley, in a short ceremony on Tuesday.

Maia Luxury Resort & Spa is the 21^st hotel to be certified and according to the minister, 74 percent of large hotels in Seychelles are now SSTL certified.

“This shows that more and more of our operators are recognising the need and importance of sustainable operations and they are embracing the ministry’s efforts to make of our industry a sustainable one which can contribute to the sustainable development of our country,” said the minister.

The general manager of the resort, Lionel Ferrari, said that “more visitors are looking for certified hotels and other tourism products and it is becoming a necessity for hotels to meet this need in order to increase visitor experience and satisfaction.”

The resort received the certification from the Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports & Marine, Didier Dogley, in a short ceremony on Tuesday. (Tourism Department) Photo License: CC-BY

Maia Luxury Resort & Spa is an exclusive resort conceived as a relaxing, private sanctuary with 30 rustic-style villas and an outstanding Balinese-style spa. It is set on a granite headland at Anse Louis beach on the southwest coast of the main island, Mahe.

The Seychelles Sustainable Tourism Label launched in 2012 has seen a growing interest over the last two years as hotels become more aware of the necessity and benefits of sustainable practices.   

Dogley said that the ministry will “continue to work with our medium and smaller accommodation establishments to get them on board so that they too can experience the benefits of being a responsible tourism business.”

Applicable to hotels of all sizes in Seychelles, the label is designed to encourage more efficient and sustainable ways of doing business. It works on a point-based system and hotels have to satisfy 24 “must” criteria, and depending on their sizes, hotels have to score additional points in each of eight theme areas: management, waste, water, energy, staff, conservation, community and guests.

The tourism department has developed the label so as to be able to certify not only hotels but tour operators, Destination Management Companies, the boating-yachting sector and restaurants. These certifications will be launched at the end of 2019.

Seychelles, a group of 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean, relies largely on tourism which is the top contributor to its economy.