As part of the Sultanate of Oman's programme for the Fifa World Cup 2022, the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism (MoHT) has launched the #HalfTimeForOman competition on social media platforms to win free holidays in the Sultanate of Oman, through the national travel operator platform - visitoman.om, in partnership with Oman Air.
Aimed at getting inbound tourists to the Sultanate, the competition will be held during the break between the halves of all matches of the Qatar 2022 World Cup. It targets fans from outside the country and gives them the opportunity to explore unique experiences, heritage and tourism sites.
Sources in the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism said that this would be purely an overseas campaign designed to get football fans outside the country to the Sultanate.
Visit Oman is the digital travel booking gateway of the Sultanate of Oman. It provides travel agents and tour operators with access to a Business-to-Business marketplace that consolidates an extensive range of Oman suppliers providing travel and tourism services such as transportation, accommodation and experiences through a dynamic digital platform. The upcoming Qatar 2022 Fifa World Cup is expected to boost the GCC tourism sector in the short term, according to experts at a webinar attended by Oman Observer on Tuesday.
A recent Fitch Solutions report said, "While Qatar will be the main beneficiary as host of the World Cup, the event's impact will spill over to neighbouring countries as Qatar alone is unable to accommodate all visitors associated with the tournament.
Other GCC states will accommodate fans seeking to travel to Qatar to watch the games. Several airlines, including those from the Sultanate, will enable ticket holders to travel to and from Doha immediately before and after the fixture."
Forecasts suggest that growth in tourist arrivals to all GCC countries will accelerate in 2022, with Oman and Saudi Arabia's growth rates reaching triple digits to even around 150 per cent.
"We expect the influx of tourists will provide a boost to the accommodation, retail, restaurant and recreation sectors across the GCC states, supporting overall economic activity in 2022."
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