The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands’ Mariyam Shaghaf, winner of Hotelier Maldives Awards 2025, wins LQA Sirius Award 2026

Mariyam Shaghaf of The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands has won an LQA Sirius Award 2026, adding another international accolade to a year that has already brought her major recognition in luxury hospitality. Shaghaf was named among the winners announced by LQA, which describes the Sirius Awards as the only global awards dedicated exclusively to frontline excellence in luxury hospitality.

According to LQA, the awards honour 100 professionals selected from thousands of “Star Employees” identified during LQA assessments, with winners chosen impartially and solely on merit. The first annual LQA Sirius Awards are being held in Lisbon, Portugal, on 13–14 May 2026. LQA also states that, alongside the 100 Sirius Award winners, 10 special awards will be presented.

Shaghaf was listed by LQA among a group of hospitality professionals recognised for service excellence, representing The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands.

The latest recognition follows Shaghaf’s earlier honour at the Hotelier Maldives Awards 2025, where she won Concierge/Guest Service Personality of the Year. She was among the winners recognised at the 2025 edition of the awards, where Hotelier Maldives honoured professionals across 23 individual and four team categories.

Shaghaf’s international recognition had already gained momentum in February this year, when she was named 2026 Forbes Travel Guide Employee of the Year. At the time, The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands said it was “immensely proud” to celebrate Shaghaf, known on the island as an Aris Meeha, and described the award as an “extraordinary distinction honouring service at its finest.” The resort said her approach is defined by “unwavering dedication, sincere warmth, and intuitive care,” adding that she transforms each interaction into a meaningful memory.

In a Hotelier Maldives profile published in July 2025, Shaghaf said winning at the Hotelier Maldives Awards was “incredibly humbling,” adding that the recognition was “more than just a title” and “a reflection of the love, passion, and purpose” that shapes her work as an Aris Meeha.

The profile described the Aris Meeha role as a culturally rooted expression of service at The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands, blending Maldivian tradition with the expectations of modern luxury travellers. Shaghaf said the role is not simply about attending to requests, but about building connection and anticipating guest needs. “We don’t just serve—we anticipate, personalise, and connect,” she said, describing Aris Meehas as storytellers who share Maldivian culture while forming lasting guest relationships.

Her service philosophy is captured in a line that has become closely associated with her approach: “If a guest has to ask for something, the moment is already lost.” In the July 2025 profile, Shaghaf explained that exceptional service often lies in the smallest details and in recognising what matters before it is spoken.

The feature highlighted several examples of that approach. In one instance, she created a framed skymap for a returning couple, capturing the stars above the resort at the exact moment of their wedding ceremony. In another, she produced a custom Ritz-Carlton “passport” for a young guest who had declared the Fari Islands resort his favourite in the brand. Both gestures were designed to create a sense of personal connection beyond the stay itself.

Shaghaf’s hospitality career began in 2013 at Cheval Blanc Randheli, where she worked as a housekeeping coordinator. According to the Hotelier Maldives feature, a formative experience assisting a visiting etiquette and protocol trainer from France helped steer her towards the butler path and shaped a service style built on empathy and precision.

Her latest LQA recognition adds to what has become a standout period for both Shaghaf and The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands. Coming after her Hotelier Maldives Awards 2025 win and her Forbes Travel Guide honour earlier this year, the Sirius Award further reinforces the international visibility of Maldivian talent in luxury hospitality.