Muscat: Dhofar is gearing up to receive more European tourist groups during the winter tourism season this year. Marhoon bin Said al Amri, Director-General of Tourism in Dhofar, said that the tourism activity was expected to witness a significant growth in the near future as more tourists of different nationalities were expected to visit the Sultanate. More European tourists are expected to visit the Sultanate during this winter season. Groups of tourists from Germany, France, Italy, Czech, Slovakia, Poland, Russia and other European countries visit the Sultanate either by flights or cruise ships. He added that with the opening of more avenues, such as the Russian market, the tourism will significantly increase in the governorate. It is expected that the number of Russian tourists who will visit Dhofar for the first time will be 5,400.
Al Amri said the ministry’s launch of “Dhofar Land for all Seasons” is aimed at making Dhofar a unique tourist destination in the world. This campaign was launched in international exhibitions and promotional campaigns around the world. The ministry also worked with various major shipping companies, to make Salalah a port of call. These efforts resulted in the 90 per cent occupancy rate during winter tourism season. It showed that the efforts made by the ministry and its partners were successful in marketing the winter season to the entire world.
On the preparations for the winter tourism, Marhoon al Amri said that a number of projects were completed and opened up in Dhofar to support the growth and revitalisation of tourism in different seasons of the year. These projects included Salalah International Airport and a number of tourist resorts, including the recently opened Al Baleed Tourist Resort, a group of hotel apartments, commercial complexes and other tourism projects. The directorate also held meetings and participated in several meetings at Salalah Airport and the port of Salalah in the presence of all concerned government agencies and companies, shipping firms and agents to discuss preparations for the winter tourism season.
The monitoring teams of the ministry conducted ground visits and inspected hotels and tourist camps to gauge the standards of hotel services offered to tourists and the level of their conformity with the requirements of the ministry. It also inspected new hotels and hotel apartments, which have showed their readiness to receive tourists to see if they provide required services.
Al Amri said that Dhofar has moderate weather for most part of the year, making it a preferred destination for European tourists in the winter. The governorate enjoys many attractions such as beaches, mountains, wadis and deserts. Dhofar enjoys diverse coastal, rural and desert environments, which are attractive for the tourists.
Tourists can visit archaeological heritage sites, such as Al Baleed and Land of Frankincense Museum and Samharam, traditional markets and natural sites such farms of frankincense trees. Tourists can also enjoy diving and see corals, dolphins and whales.
Rowas bin Hafeez al Rowas, Director-General for Tourism Development and Investors Services, said the meetings were held with the tourism companies to ascertain their readiness for the season, especially those companies, which organise tours for groups from European countries. He said that after ease in the visa norms for Russians, Iranians and Chinese nationals, it is expected that more of them would arrive in Dhofar during this season. Mohammed bin Ali al Mashani, Director of Government Relations at Salalah Beach Development Company (Hawana Salalah), said winter tourism is popular in Dhofar and can grow further. He said that the occupancy rate has reached 93 per cent. Most of the tourists are from Italy, Germany, Poland, Switzerland, France and Slovakia. — ONA
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