What are your plans for Eid al Fitr holidays?

Muscat: With the Eid al-Fitr holidays just two weeks from now, travel for a vacation has begun for citizens and residents keeping into account the general expectations that holidays in the second week of April, including the weekends.

With a range of hotels, hotel apartments, and resorts, the Sultanate is also an attractive and viable option for residents of other GCC countries due to its liberal tourist e-visa, visa-on-arrival, or visa-free schemes. GCC residents can enter the Sultanate of Oman using Visa Type 29A (Resident Tourist Visa).

Travelers from the UAE and Saudi Arabia have the option to arrive in the country directly by road.

The Ministry of Heritage and Tourism has been encouraging domestic tourism through various promotional campaigns, which include using social media networking sites and social media influencers.

Travel operators too are in the fray with a range of packages that can be booked in advance or on after arrival in the Sultanate.

With rising temperatures, for domestic tourism, Jabal Akhdar and Jabal Shams are promoted among the main options for domestic and international tourists, including single-day tours.

The three to five-star hotels saw an increase of 18 percent in the number of guests (433,856) in the first two months of 2024, compared to 366,969 in 2023, with the occupancy rate going up to 61.5 from 55.3 percent in 2023.

Visitors from Saudi Arabia and the UAE can enter Oman via road

Outbound tourism

Among popular destinations, Oman citizens can travel visa-free to Turkey this year.

In 2022, 130,000 Omanis entered Türkiye for tourism purposes, which is expected to increase with the ease of travel rules this time.

Currently, Oman Air, SalamAir, Pegasus Airlines, and Turkish Airlines fly to destinations in Turkey from the Sultanate with some fares starting from around RO50 (one-way) to RO150 (one-way).

Other popular international destinations include Malaysia, Thailand, Kenya, Serbia, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.