Club Med coming to Salalah
French Club Med's first resort in Arabia will be at Salalah, Governorate of Dhofar in southern Oman. The company signed a deal with Muriya Tourism Development company ten days ago.
Club Med specialises in luxurious, self-contained resorts with all manner of sports and activities for adults and families. The company offers luxury accommodation in many exotic locations. If all you want to do is to vegetate in the sun for two weeks, Club Med is hard to beat - I guess. I've never been on one of their holidays myself.
The Club Med philosophy dovetails very neatly with the Ministry of Tourism policy of encouraging 'high-class' tourism in set-apart locations. Salalah has a climate which would appeal much of the year to Europeans. Its summers of cloud bound mist, the Khareef, attracts many Gulf tourists as an escape from oppressive heat. For them, Rotana and Moevenpick will offer five-star accommodation.
Dr Rajha bint Abdulameer bin Ali, Minister of Tourism speaking to the Oman Observer, justified growth in tourism because tourists spend money and stimulate the local economy. Tourism projects also provide construction jobs for labourers - nationality unspecified - and enable them to improve the lifestyle of their families. Supplying these results with local produce would stimulate the growth of SMEs, although I have my doubts about that. I wonder why she had to explain these basics.
But you know, if I was spending all that money to fly to Salalah, I'd want to get out and see a bit more. Possibly the desert, or the 'lost city of Ubar.' At least get up into the misty hills to see rain-soaked vegetation in what you think of as desert, waterfalls and Job's Tomb. September is recommended. The air is clear of dust after the mists have gone and the flowers bloom after the monsoon rains.
Club Med specialises in luxurious, self-contained resorts with all manner of sports and activities for adults and families. The company offers luxury accommodation in many exotic locations. If all you want to do is to vegetate in the sun for two weeks, Club Med is hard to beat - I guess. I've never been on one of their holidays myself.
The Club Med philosophy dovetails very neatly with the Ministry of Tourism policy of encouraging 'high-class' tourism in set-apart locations. Salalah has a climate which would appeal much of the year to Europeans. Its summers of cloud bound mist, the Khareef, attracts many Gulf tourists as an escape from oppressive heat. For them, Rotana and Moevenpick will offer five-star accommodation.
Dr Rajha bint Abdulameer bin Ali, Minister of Tourism speaking to the Oman Observer, justified growth in tourism because tourists spend money and stimulate the local economy. Tourism projects also provide construction jobs for labourers - nationality unspecified - and enable them to improve the lifestyle of their families. Supplying these results with local produce would stimulate the growth of SMEs, although I have my doubts about that. I wonder why she had to explain these basics.
But you know, if I was spending all that money to fly to Salalah, I'd want to get out and see a bit more. Possibly the desert, or the 'lost city of Ubar.' At least get up into the misty hills to see rain-soaked vegetation in what you think of as desert, waterfalls and Job's Tomb. September is recommended. The air is clear of dust after the mists have gone and the flowers bloom after the monsoon rains.
