Southern Oman braces for Gulf tourist influx

Oman has adorned its southern province of Dhofar with flags, lights and giant signboards as it braces for a massive influx of visitors from neighbouring Gulf countries seeking to escape the scorching summer heat at home.

Most of the tourists head for the southern provincial capital of Salalah, the scene of an annual traditional festival that has been staged by Oman for many years to utilize the area’s relatively mild weather and develop the tourisms sector as part of an ongoing programme to diversify the oil-reliant economy.

This year’s “Salalah Festival”, opening Thursday, will feature many additional events, including a cultural village showing Oman’s past and present, traditional food and fashion shows, contests and folklore nights, Omani newspapers said.

“Preparations are in full swing to inaugurate this year’s Salalah Festival, which will be opened by Ali bin Hamoud Al Bousaeedi, Minister of Sultani Palace, in the presence of many senior officials,” Al Watan Arabic language daily said.

Salalah, overlooking the Indian Ocean, attracted a record high number of vacationers from nearby UAE and other Gulf countries during the tourism season last year and officials believe another record will be achieved this year.

Over the past two decades, Salalah has remained a key tourism destination for Gulf families escaping the sizzling desert heat as Oman’s second largest city enjoys tropical climate despite its proximity to the Arabian desert.

Salalah, the capital and seat of the governor or Wali of the southern Omani province of Dhofar, is subjected to the south-west monsoons.

The period of late June to early September is known as the khareef (autumn) season, during which visitors from across the Gulf flock to the city to enjoy the monsoon and avoid the harsh heat faced by the rest of the region.

During this period, the town's population more than doubles and various exhibitions and other events are organized, such as the Khareef Festival.

Salalah, nearly 1,050 kilometres south of the Omani capital Muscat, is known as the “perfume capital of Arabia and for its giant coconut trees.  Besides its relatively good weather and location, the city is a strong tourism destination due to the natural attractions of the nearby mountains and abundant stands of frankincense trees lining mountain wadi courses.

Around the city and into the mountains the countryside is lush and green during the monsoon period with the vegetation supporting herds of cattle.

The climate supports wildlife often more commonly associated with East Africa, such as leopards and hyenas.The beaches and coastline are also major attractions for scuba diving and bird watching.

Official figures showed around 450,000 tourists from the Gulf, including Oman itself, visited Salalah during last year’s Khareef season, an increase of nearly 24 per cent over the previous year’s season. Spending by those tourists last year stood at a record RO66 million (Dh633 million).

According to a survey by the Ministry of Tourism, most of the Gulf visitors prefer to spend their holiday in rented accommodation rather than hotels. The survey showed that 77 per cent of the visitors last year spent a record 2.1 million nights in rented houses and apartments in the city, with a population of over 200,000.

Officials said the Ministry had been locked in a drive over the past two years to develop logistic and recreation facilities in Salalah. they said the plan runs parallel to another project to rehabilitate key historical sites in the town.

Oman, a small non-OPEC oil producer, has embarked on an ambitious programme to diversify its economy by expanding non-hydrocarbon sectors, including tourism, industry, farming and services.

The campaign, which includes privatizations, has already started to pay off, with the tourism, hotels and restaurants sector recording rapid growth over the past few years.

From around RO88 million (Dh845 million) in 2005, the sector’s contribution to the GDP surged by around 30 per cent to RO115 million (Dh1.1 billion) in 2007 and by 10.6 per cent to RO127.2 million (Dh1.22 billion) in 2008. It was expected to have exceeded RO140 million (Dh1.34 billion) in 2009.

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