Happy Holidays! Which kind of tourist?
With New Year and the Eid al Adha coinciding in 2006, I assume that the hotels in Muscat were very busy.
I can't answer for the occupancy rates of the upmarket hotels. Both Gulf News and the Oman Observer emphasised that it was Asian expatriates resident in UAE who were heading in droves over the border to cheaper hotels and apartments in Muscat.
Thanks to the Muscat Festival which began on January 1st, nationals from List 2, which includes India, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Iran, Lebanon and Morocco, would have been able to get a visa on arrival in Oman, providing they were members of a formal tourist party.
50% to 75% of the Eid visitors were reckoned to have travelled from Dubai and other parts of UAE, followed by Kuwait and Qatar. By contrast, the number of business visitors was lower, but that would hardly be surprising given the season.
Al-Hoota Cave in the Dhakhiliya region south-east of Muscat, newly opened in early December, was a big attraction for visitors from the UAE according to an official at the Ministry of Tourism. The cave has a 5-km-long tunnel running through the Al Hajar Mountains with a small railway leading to a cavern with a subterranean lake.
Oman is near enough to Dubai for workers to have enjoyed their 3-day Eid holiday with a relatively short distance to their destination. Contrast that with the 9-day holiday awarded to the public sector in Oman. The private sector received five days.
Residents of Oman were heading in the other direction to Dubai to enjoy the Dubai Shopping Festival, or flying off to Singapore, Malaysia and Bangkok, or simply going home to visit their families in rural villages. The Oman Observer reported on 31st December that amusement parks were packed, as were cafes and restaurants. Many people were reported to have set up barbecues on the beach.
A holiday cruise between Muscat and Dubai planned by Light and Shadow Enterprise to combine the New Year's Eve and Eid Al Adha holidays aboard the Dream Princess, had to be cancelled at the last minute, blamed on bureaucratic and technical hitches. Memories of the awful accident on the dhow in Bahrain earlier in 2006 might have been at the back of people's minds. Apparently, the guest list included 'some of Oman's top dignitaries, captains of industry and leading personalities,' all eager to part with RO150 for the experience.
Where were the upmarket tourists that Oman is supposed to be trying to attract? How did they enjoy Eid and the New Year?
Well, the cruise ship Costa Classica arrived at Sultan Qaboos Port on 21st December with 1, 276 tourists on board. The ship was received by His Highness Sayyid Haitham bin Tareq al Said, Minister of Heritage and Culture, Maqbool bin Ali Sultan, Minister of Commerce and Industry; Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdullah bin Issa al Harthy, Minister of Transport and Communications and Dr Rajha bint Abdulameer bin Ali, Minister of Tourism according to the Oman Observer, so you can't say that there wasn't an effort to welcome those on board.
A seven day cruise with Costa Crociere in January calls at Bahrain, ports in the UAE and Muscat for a mere 1,359 euros.
What the Oman Observer did not report but Gulf News did were the remarks of Pier Luigi Foschi, chairman and CEO of Costa Crociere.
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As a footnote to the previous entry, lastminute.com has just landed in my Inbox with an offer of 7 nights inclusive in Sharm el Sheikh in 3* accommodation from £199. Can't be bad if all I was seeking was the sun, the nightlife and the diving. No problem with visas.
I can't answer for the occupancy rates of the upmarket hotels. Both Gulf News and the Oman Observer emphasised that it was Asian expatriates resident in UAE who were heading in droves over the border to cheaper hotels and apartments in Muscat.
Thanks to the Muscat Festival which began on January 1st, nationals from List 2, which includes India, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Iran, Lebanon and Morocco, would have been able to get a visa on arrival in Oman, providing they were members of a formal tourist party.
50% to 75% of the Eid visitors were reckoned to have travelled from Dubai and other parts of UAE, followed by Kuwait and Qatar. By contrast, the number of business visitors was lower, but that would hardly be surprising given the season.
Al-Hoota Cave in the Dhakhiliya region south-east of Muscat, newly opened in early December, was a big attraction for visitors from the UAE according to an official at the Ministry of Tourism. The cave has a 5-km-long tunnel running through the Al Hajar Mountains with a small railway leading to a cavern with a subterranean lake.
Oman is near enough to Dubai for workers to have enjoyed their 3-day Eid holiday with a relatively short distance to their destination. Contrast that with the 9-day holiday awarded to the public sector in Oman. The private sector received five days.
Residents of Oman were heading in the other direction to Dubai to enjoy the Dubai Shopping Festival, or flying off to Singapore, Malaysia and Bangkok, or simply going home to visit their families in rural villages. The Oman Observer reported on 31st December that amusement parks were packed, as were cafes and restaurants. Many people were reported to have set up barbecues on the beach.
A holiday cruise between Muscat and Dubai planned by Light and Shadow Enterprise to combine the New Year's Eve and Eid Al Adha holidays aboard the Dream Princess, had to be cancelled at the last minute, blamed on bureaucratic and technical hitches. Memories of the awful accident on the dhow in Bahrain earlier in 2006 might have been at the back of people's minds. Apparently, the guest list included 'some of Oman's top dignitaries, captains of industry and leading personalities,' all eager to part with RO150 for the experience.
Where were the upmarket tourists that Oman is supposed to be trying to attract? How did they enjoy Eid and the New Year?
Well, the cruise ship Costa Classica arrived at Sultan Qaboos Port on 21st December with 1, 276 tourists on board. The ship was received by His Highness Sayyid Haitham bin Tareq al Said, Minister of Heritage and Culture, Maqbool bin Ali Sultan, Minister of Commerce and Industry; Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdullah bin Issa al Harthy, Minister of Transport and Communications and Dr Rajha bint Abdulameer bin Ali, Minister of Tourism according to the Oman Observer, so you can't say that there wasn't an effort to welcome those on board.
A seven day cruise with Costa Crociere in January calls at Bahrain, ports in the UAE and Muscat for a mere 1,359 euros.
What the Oman Observer did not report but Gulf News did were the remarks of Pier Luigi Foschi, chairman and CEO of Costa Crociere.
"I urge the government here to improve infrastructure like airports, ports and hotels," he said. "The facilities are good but there is a lot of room for improvement."Ah, yes, visas. One always wonders when entering Oman whether you're really wanted.
He said he would like to see seaports become more passenger friendly. "Passengers should be treated like passengers," he said, hoping that visa procedures will also be simplified to make it easier for the tourism wishing to come here and explore the beautiful landscapes.
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As a footnote to the previous entry, lastminute.com has just landed in my Inbox with an offer of 7 nights inclusive in Sharm el Sheikh in 3* accommodation from £199. Can't be bad if all I was seeking was the sun, the nightlife and the diving. No problem with visas.
Expensive B&B
A travel brochure addressed to the Tropical Traveller plopped through my letter box two days before New Year. This is traditionally the time when people turn their minds to what they will do in the summer once the run-up to Christmas and all the winter festivities have passed.
Wait a minute, Tropical Sky is aiming at that sector of the tourist market that is reckoned to be able to afford to go a little further than the rest of us in search of winter sun.
I hadn't asked for this brochure. I suspect that my name had been passed on in some sort of mailing list from another travel company with which I have done business. I unpacked the brochure from the plastic wrapping and put it on the table until such time as I would have despatched it to the recycling sack. Meanwhile, my son picked it up and leafed through it. 'Mum,' he said, 'they've got Oman in here!'
I looked. The Chedi was offering three (yes, just three) nights bed and breakfast for an all-in price of £599 whilst I could travel to the Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah for three nights B&B for £499. Placed immediately above these offers were advertisements for two five star hotels in Egypt. I could go to Luxor for seven nights B&B for £549 or Sharm el Sheikh for £459. I'm assuming that the flights were included.
I could have been tempted by the offers for Egypt which seemed good value, but I've been to Egypt.
I've been to Oman for that matter. I couldn't envisage travelling all that way for just 3 nights B&B. Mind you, the two-night safari packages in Kenya and South Africa were comparable in cost to the Oman offerings. I've been to Kenya and South Africa too in the past, at a fraction of the cost.
Blue skies, white beaches, stunning hotels, constant warmth and sun. That's what all these holidays offered, with an assumption that you wouldn't have to move from your resort. Perfect for the honeymoon couple perhaps, or the stressed senior manager wanting a place to wind down, but where he could still keep in touch with his company by Blackberry.
I guess that the safari packages are included if you want to do a bit more than lay by a hotel pool. Similarly, Oman may be there as an add-on to the hurly burly of shopping in Dubai.
The Tropical Sky website's optional extra tours suggested Muscat City and Desert Safari – a half day exploring the dunes in a 4 wheel drive as well as a fuller tour with overnight stop(s). You wouldn't have time to do much else in just three days.
Then I recalled an article by Jeremy Clarkson in The Times a few days ago. Jeremy Clarkson, it must be admitted, is the unashamed advocate of fast, powerful cars as Toys for Boys in BBC's Top Gear. Nevertheless, he is popular, and influential.
He was musing on what holiday destinations could tell us about the music preferences of the personalities who choose them. This little quote stuck right out at me:
As for me, I'm rather tempted by a 10 day cruise around the Galapagos Islands where I would be able to see the 'living laboratory of evolution' as described by the tour company. The iguanas, the tortoises, the finches, the geology - it's a once in a lifetime experience. I'd have to cough up £5000 for that, although I could get away with £3000 for a land trip.
In the summer, the odds are that the weather will be warm, and it will be too hot to go south. How would I have felt as a tourist going to Oman for 3 days' relaxation in the sun during all that recent rain?
Wait a minute, Tropical Sky is aiming at that sector of the tourist market that is reckoned to be able to afford to go a little further than the rest of us in search of winter sun.
I hadn't asked for this brochure. I suspect that my name had been passed on in some sort of mailing list from another travel company with which I have done business. I unpacked the brochure from the plastic wrapping and put it on the table until such time as I would have despatched it to the recycling sack. Meanwhile, my son picked it up and leafed through it. 'Mum,' he said, 'they've got Oman in here!'
I looked. The Chedi was offering three (yes, just three) nights bed and breakfast for an all-in price of £599 whilst I could travel to the Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah for three nights B&B for £499. Placed immediately above these offers were advertisements for two five star hotels in Egypt. I could go to Luxor for seven nights B&B for £549 or Sharm el Sheikh for £459. I'm assuming that the flights were included.
I could have been tempted by the offers for Egypt which seemed good value, but I've been to Egypt.
I've been to Oman for that matter. I couldn't envisage travelling all that way for just 3 nights B&B. Mind you, the two-night safari packages in Kenya and South Africa were comparable in cost to the Oman offerings. I've been to Kenya and South Africa too in the past, at a fraction of the cost.
Blue skies, white beaches, stunning hotels, constant warmth and sun. That's what all these holidays offered, with an assumption that you wouldn't have to move from your resort. Perfect for the honeymoon couple perhaps, or the stressed senior manager wanting a place to wind down, but where he could still keep in touch with his company by Blackberry.
I guess that the safari packages are included if you want to do a bit more than lay by a hotel pool. Similarly, Oman may be there as an add-on to the hurly burly of shopping in Dubai.
The Tropical Sky website's optional extra tours suggested Muscat City and Desert Safari – a half day exploring the dunes in a 4 wheel drive as well as a fuller tour with overnight stop(s). You wouldn't have time to do much else in just three days.
Then I recalled an article by Jeremy Clarkson in The Times a few days ago. Jeremy Clarkson, it must be admitted, is the unashamed advocate of fast, powerful cars as Toys for Boys in BBC's Top Gear. Nevertheless, he is popular, and influential.
He was musing on what holiday destinations could tell us about the music preferences of the personalities who choose them. This little quote stuck right out at me:
Dubai is right out. It’s all very well having an indoor ski slope in the desert and guaranteed sunshine and lots of things to do in the empty quarter, but you cannot drink outside your hotel. And I’m sorry, but anyone who puts quad biking and wadi bashing above the need for a glass of something chilled is plainly out of their tiny minds.. People of Clarkson's ilk are not going to be drawn merely by the promise of beautiful, unspoilt surroundings.
As for me, I'm rather tempted by a 10 day cruise around the Galapagos Islands where I would be able to see the 'living laboratory of evolution' as described by the tour company. The iguanas, the tortoises, the finches, the geology - it's a once in a lifetime experience. I'd have to cough up £5000 for that, although I could get away with £3000 for a land trip.
In the summer, the odds are that the weather will be warm, and it will be too hot to go south. How would I have felt as a tourist going to Oman for 3 days' relaxation in the sun during all that recent rain?