The Future of the Tourism Sector in Oman Self-Assured Outstanding Year Ahead

The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 has made tourists from new markets want to visit the area. So as we head into the New Year, it's great that almost all travel restrictions have been lifted worldwide. "Already, airlines are adding more routes and increasing their total number of flights worldwide." Mohammed Al Ghufaili, Chief Operating Officer of Omran Group, said in an interview with Times of Oman. He was talking about what Omran Group had planned for 2023.

Even within the borders of Oman, we are taking steps to help the tourism industry grow and attract more visitors. For example, Oman has made the visa application process easier, and people from 103 countries and areas no longer need an entry visa for stays of up to 14 days.

Residents of the GCC can now enter Oman with a visa-on-arrival or a pre-arranged electronic visa, depending on their status as GCC residents. The change was made to enhance regional tourism.

Al Ghufaili said, "At Omran Group, we would like to add even more nature, history, sports, adventure, and cultural attractions to the Oman tourism portfolio in the coming year." We're putting a lot of money into building new attractions in strategic places nationwide, like the beautiful Musandam zipline. This one-of-a-kind project is part of a bigger plan and stretches for 1,800 meters, from the top of a mountain 250 meters above sea level to the Atana Khasab resort. When it is finished, tourists can do something they can't do anywhere else in the area. We are making places like the Sustainable City Yiti, Wadi Dayqah, and other well-known tourist destinations.

"Omran promotes the country in source markets with the help of the relevant ministries, governorate offices, and our group company, Visit Oman," the senior official said.

The Visit Oman platform (visitoman. om), which was previously only a B2B platform, now also offers services to consumers, making it possible to function as a one-stop shop for all of a visitor's tourism-related needs from the initial planning and itinerary to the booking of flights and accommodations. The sudden surge of visitors to the site and our social media campaigns have helped uncover new prospective target markets for us to approach in the coming year. So this is something we're thinking about doing.

I think we will have a great year because of these things. The tourism industry could do a lot better in 2023 than it did in 2022 and even better than it did in 2019.

Al Ghufaili emphasized that Oman's tourism and hospitality industries would be better off due to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.

He stated that

We received a surge of visitors to Oman, the majority of whom came from within the region, source markets, and even further beyond.
 

A project named "Oman World Cup Programme" was developed so that the participants may have a World Cup experience unequaled to any other. Along with a series of promotional campaigns that coincided with the tournament, Hayya cardholders and their families could get a free 60-day multiple-entry visa, exclusive fast-track routes and gates at the airport, daily shuttle flights to Qatar, as well as several one-of-a-kind experiences as well as a wide range of transportation and accommodation offers.

The Ministry of Heritage and Tourism was in charge of the program, and they worked closely with the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Youth, the Royal Oman Police, Omran Group, Oman Air, and Oman Airports, in addition to a variety of other public and government authorities and private businesses.

Al Ghufaili said the World Cup "drew a lot of interest from places that aren't usually source markets, like South America and Europe."

He added, "The response to the Oman World Cup Programme campaigns showed how interested people were, which were spearheaded by the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism. These campaigns included the #OmanMatchReady and #HalfTimeForOman campaigns, which were held before and during the World Cup, respectively."

These initiatives attracted unparalleled engagement from people worldwide, particularly from countries like Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, the Netherlands, and Serbia; the total number of impressions and clicks generated by these users amounted to over 63 million.

These initiatives attracted unparalleled engagement from people worldwide, particularly from countries like Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, the Netherlands, and Serbia; the total number of impressions and clicks generated by these users amounted to over 63 million.

"A huge positive impact was noted in terms of occupancy and income at hotels located in Muscat, especially from food and beverage and banqueting services. This was a direct outcome of the numerous fan gatherings and festivals that took place all throughout the capital city at hotels and other popular tourist destinations."

The Football Fan Festival was hosted at the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre during the World Cup. Al Ghufaili said the event was "a great example" of the festival's potential. It was a truly world-class event, but unlike most other events in the area, it was designed from the start to be a family-friendly event with games, contests, unique digital experiences, entertainment, and food and drink for people of all ages to enjoy.," It was a truly world-class event, but unlike most in the region, it was designed from the beginning to be kid- and family-friendly by including games, contests, and other activities.

The festival had six huge screens where people could watch live broadcasts of all 64 World Cup games. Because of this, more than 92,000 fans from all over the country, the area, and even farther away came to the festival,” he said.

Al Ghufaili said this about the performance of Omran hotels over the past few months: "Our group hotels have done well this year. At the end of this year's third quarter, occupancy and revenues have increased by 18% and 71%, respectively, compared to 2021."

To give a sense of perspective, the Khareef season in Dhofar and the #WithinOman campaign take place in July, August, and September. The #WithinOman campaign was meant to get more people to travel within Oman during the summer and on holidays.

Because of this, our assets in the region rose 127% in occupancy and 146% in revenue for the third quarter of this year compared to the second quarter. In addition, given that temperatures tend to be lower in the capital during the fourth quarter of each year, our properties in Muscat often experience a noticeable rise in occupancy and an increase in revenues.

On the other hand, the General Manager of the Sheraton Oman Hotel, Samir Messaoudi, had a different take on the occupancy levels during the FIFA World Cup. He said, "We didn't witness a major variation in the occupancy in November owing to the World Cup."

People attending the World Cup rented out a few rooms, but it was insignificant. But right now, we're getting a good number of guests, and next year will be good for both our company and the hotel business.

A report from the National Center for Statistics and Information (NCSI) shows that the revenue of 3–5 star hotels in the Sultanate of Oman reached more than OMR 161 million by the end of November 2022.

According to the statistics, the total number of visitors who stayed in hotels in the Sultanate of Oman, with a rating of between three and five stars, reached approximately 1,449,511 by the end of November 2022.

Our international leisure market drove our business indicators and figures for November 2022. However, no pick-up trends were seen surrounding the World Cup hoopla, said Nabil Al Zadjali, the General Manager of Al Bustan Palace, a Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

There is no question that the World Cup in 2022 was the most significant event in our region. The event brought a large number of visitors to Qatar as well as an audience overflow from the other member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Still, Oman did not secure a significant portion of this.

There is no question that the World Cup in 2022 was the most significant event in our region. The event brought a large number of visitors to Qatar as well as an audience overflow from the other member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Still, Oman did not secure a significant portion of this.