Sold-out bookings signal strong demand for Razat Farm

SALALAH: Every operating date at Razat Royal Farm through September 2 was marked sold out on Thursday, offering the clearest public indication yet that the Salalah attraction is drawing strong demand as it approaches its first anniversary.
The farm’s official booking portal showed all 15 operating days from August 13 to September 2 carrying the 'Tickets Sold Out' label. September 3 was the first displayed date not marked sold out when the Observer checked the platform.
Royal Court Affairs has not published a cumulative attendance figure for the farm, while the booking platform does not disclose daily capacity. The booking calendar therefore cannot establish the number of visitors, but it provides verifiable evidence that the guided trail has emerged as a sought-after addition to Dhofar’s tourism offering.
Demand for the attraction comes as travel and tourism activity across the governorate continues to grow.

Oman Airports data showed that arriving passenger numbers at Salalah Airport increased by eight per cent to 154,529 between June 21 and July 31, compared with 142,488 during the corresponding period in 2025. Arriving flights rose by seven per cent to 1,758 from 1,637.
Airport passenger numbers are not a direct measure of tourist arrivals, but the increase points to stronger travel activity during the current khareef season.
The wider seasonal trend is also evident. Data from the National Centre for Statistics and Information showed that Khareef Dhofar received 1,070,738 visitors in 2025, compared with 1,047,751 in 2024 and 962,196 in 2023.
Razat’s tourist trail opened on August 18, 2025, under the Royal Orders of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik. This makes 2026 its first full khareef season since the farm began receiving visitors.

The guided experience starts at an external reception building, from where visitors are transported through several stations across the working farm. The route introduces them to crops, tropical trees, modern cultivation techniques, livestock and agricultural research before reaching an integrated visitor station with rest and refreshment facilities.
Dhofar resident Ali al Mashaikhi, who visited the farm with his family, said the attraction had added a different dimension to the places local families enjoy during khareef.
“As a family from Dhofar, we continue to enjoy visiting the mountains, springs and beaches every khareef. Razat has now given us another option — one that combines a family outing with learning,” he said.
“The children could see how crops are grown and learn about agriculture at close range. They enjoyed the visit and came away with new questions and knowledge, which made the experience worthwhile for all of us.”

The appeal of Razat lies in turning ongoing agricultural production and research into the substance of the visitor experience.
Located on Sultan Qaboos Street in eastern Salalah, the farm covers 1,085 acres, of which 900 are cultivated. Bananas are its most widely grown crop, followed by coconuts and papayas. The estate contains more than 16,000 coconut trees of different ages.
It also produces grapes, local red figs, Omani limes and several tropical and subtropical fruits. Annual organic turmeric production stands at about 50 tonnes, according to the farm, with the crop processed at what it describes as Oman’s first specialised turmeric production facility.
Agricultural research gives the trail an additional educational dimension.

In July, Royal Court Affairs announced that the farm had successfully produced pineapples locally after nearly 15 years of research and cultivation trials.
The work progressed from limited planting in pots to wider cultivation in soil beneath tree cover and inside greenhouses. Researchers tested Queen, Mauritius and MD-2 varieties, with the current MD-2 crop producing fruit weighing between two and more than four kilogrammes.
Royal Court Affairs said pineapples require less water than several other tropical crops, while tissue-culture technology has helped produce uniform, disease-free seedlings for possible expansion.
The farm is also the origin of the Razat banana, which emerged through a natural mutation in a field planted with the Williams variety. Selection work began in 2015 and was followed by several years of cultivation and observation.

The Razat variety can be harvested about three weeks earlier than Williams and produces heavier bunches, according to Royal Court Affairs.
The site also connects agricultural production with Dhofar’s water and farming heritage. Part of the estate is irrigated through a falaj extending about 13 kilometres from Ayn Razat, while a preserved agricultural tractor dating to the 1950s reflects the farm’s long history.
When the trail opened last year, Razat Farm Director Mohammad bin Alawi Ibrahim said it would be expanded with additional interactive stations.
Nearly a year later, the sold-out calendar suggests that attracting demand is no longer the immediate test. The next challenge is how the farm manages capacity, develops the visitor experience and sustains interest beyond the peak khareef weeks while preserving the agricultural and educational character that distinguishes it.