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214 cruise ships to call on Sultanate’s ports

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Muscat, Sept 24 - Cruise tourism in Oman is poised for a windfall with some 214 ships set to call on its three ports of Port Sultan Qaboos (PSQ), Khasab and Salalah.


The country is expected to see a 10-15 per cent increase in the number of vessels in the upcoming season.


A statement from the Ministry of Tourism says 152 cruise ships will visit Port Sultan Qaboos between October this year and June 2018.


Khasab will host 36 luxury vessels with 11 ships in December alone, while Salalah will receive 26 extravagant moving palaces with a maximum of eight ships in November.


“We are foreseeing a phenomenal growth in cruise tourism with nearly 214 cruise liners scheduled to visit Oman’s different ports,” said a statement from the ministry.


“This will have an enormous effect on the economy, with people spending days in the country,” the statement added.


Oman’s cruise season begins in September-October and goes on until May-June.


Until September 10 this year, Oman had received 164,000 visitors from cruise liners (46,000 visitors in January alone) against 217,000 in the previous season.


Of these visitors, 88 per cent were Europeans, of which 27 per cent were Germans.


The ministry has lined up entertainment activities along with cruises on traditional dhows, a range of sporting activities, diving, surfing and the like at various ports.


“Oman has seen a remarkable growth in cruise tourism, a trend that the Ministry of Tourism aims to promote and grow. We are coordinating with all stakeholders,” Salim Adi al Mamari, Director-General of Tourism Promotion, had said earlier.


Some of the global cruise liners visiting Oman include Costa Cruises, Aida Cruises, MSC Cruises, TUI Cruises, Royal Caribbean Cruises, P&O Cruises and cruise lines operated by Carnival UK.


Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, a UK-based and Norwegian-owned cruise shipping line, has included Omani ports in its itinerary for the upcoming season.


“We are expecting more vessels to call at our ports. We welcome more international cruise visitors to Oman waters in the days to come,” Mohammed Ali A Amir Sultan, Director, Shipping/Investments at WJ Towell and Co LLC, told the Observer.


“We, at WSS (Oman), are excited to take part in the cruise liners boom in Oman. We are overwhelmed to welcome our ships to Oman ports for the winter cruising season,” said Aju A Thomas, General Manager, Wilhelmsen Towell Co LLC (Wilhelmsen Ships Service) Oman.


KABEER YOUSUF


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