Wizz Air Abu Dhabi is set to operate low-cost flights to the Maldives.
From October 4, the low-fare airline will offer four weekly flights from Abu Dhabi to Male, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays, with tickets starting from Dh319.
The Maldives remains a popular destination for UAE travellers, who will now be able to enjoy its tropical weather, picturesque island resorts and unparalleled diving sites for less. The archipelago was one of the first destinations to welcome tourists back in the midst of the pandemic and does not currently require visitors to show proof of vaccination or a PCR test to enter.
Wizz Air Abu Dhabi is also expanding its GCC network with the launch of flights to Kuwait on October 30. The services will be operated daily, with fares starting from Dh99. Tickets for both destinations are now on sale on Wizzair.com and on the airline’s mobile app.
With these new routes, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi will fly to a total of 34 destinations within a five-hour flight time radius of Abu Dhabi. A fifth aircraft will join the airline’s fleet later this year, so flights to Kuwait and the Maldives will be operated on a new Airbus A321neo, which offers a reduced environmental footprint.
“We are excited to announce two new Wizz Air Abu Dhabi routes, which reaffirm our commitment to supporting the UAE’s travel and tourism industry by connecting its capital with many popular holiday destinations regionally and globally,” says Owain Jones, development officer at Wizz Air.
“With the arrival of our fifth Airbus aircraft in October, we are delighted to enhance connectivity with our neighbour countries across the GCC with flights to Kuwait, as well as providing our customers with affordable flights to the Maldives. We are particularly excited about the launch of flights to the Maldives, a tropical paradise destination high up on travellers’ bucket list. The Wizz team looks forward to welcoming customers onboard our young and green aircraft very soon.”
Scroll the gallery below to see how the Maldives plans to build one of the world's first floating cities:
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Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Zakat definitions
Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.
Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.
Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.
Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Race card
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
6pm: Arabian Triple Crown Round-1 Listed (PA) Dh230,000 (T) 1,600m
6.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,400m
7pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (T) 2,400m
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5