By Business Reporter — MUSCAT: MARCH 19 - The Ministry of Tourism took part in the Seatrade Cruise Global 2017 — a marine tourism exhibition and conference — which was held in Miami, USA from March 13-16, 2017. This major event is considered the biggest international forum for cruise tourism around the world with a participation of more than 700 international organisations from the global tourism sector. The event’s programme included an official meeting, a conference, meetings, an exhibition, media interviews, and the signing of MoUs and agreements.
The Sultanate has always been keen to participate in the Seatrade exhibition since 2005 as it is the most awaited international cruise tourism event in the world, bringing under one roof a number of decision makers, investors, services manufacturers and providers. Not only that, the Seatrade Cruise Global is known as an ideal platform to measure growth indicators in the tourism markets annually around the world.
The Ministry’s participation this year also comes as part of the Cruise Arabia initiative which gathers the ministries and organisations responsible for the tourism sector in the GCC. The Cruise Arabia team was formed with the aim of promoting tourism in the GCC and facilitating procedures for developing the industry in the region. The strategic promotions between the GCC countries are integrative, as all ports are linked through the same tourism market.
Recently, Oman is witnessing a steady growth in the cruise tourism industry due to the promotional and developmental efforts. Oman has three main ports that are attracting tourists from all around the world which are Sultan Qaboos port, Khasab Port, and Salalah Port. According to the latest statistics, the number of tourists visiting the Sultanate through cruises had reached more than 217,000 visitors in the previous 20152016 season compared to 148,000 visitors in 20142015, entailing a growth of 47 per cent.
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