The country was expecting growth of about 7 per cent in tourists this year.
The country was expecting growth of about 7 per cent in tourists this year.

Oman seeks high-spending tourists



Oman is striving to attract sophisticated tourists rather than simple beach seekers as part of a plan to help it preserve its culture and tradition, the country's ministry of tourism says.

"We are not looking for mass tourism," said Salim al Mamari, the director general of promotion at the Oman ministry of tourism.

"We are not into numbers. We are into the quality of the tourist. Oman is a niche market. We are trying to tackle a certain segment and tourists who will be able to help us to keep and maintain Oman as it is for generations to come."

Last year, Oman received 1.7 million tourists. Mr al Mamari said the country was expecting growth of about 7 per cent this year. Analysts said growth in the number of tourists travelling to Oman slowed amid the economic downturn.

"A huge budget has been designated for tourism development over the next five or six years," Mr al Mamari said.

Many tourism developments are taking place in the country, with more and more international hotel brands entering the country.

Among the hotels under development in Oman are Moevenpick and Club Med properties but the planned Blue City, which is supposed to have several hotels, has been hit by the property downturn.

The country's hotel supply is set to increase to 17,000 rooms from 10,500 rooms by 2017, Mr al Mamari said.

"We are developing many forts and castles into museums," he said. "Also, we are converting old villages, which are around 3,000 years old, into hotel accommodation.

"We are also training Omanis to be a part of this development, as tour guides, official companies to run the businesses and so on."

Mr al Mamari added Oman was also focusing on developing caving tourism. "We are more into green and responsible tourism."

The country is improving its airport infrastructure. Muscat and Salalah airports are being expanded and another five local airports are being built.

Europe is one of Oman's key markets and the tourism board is also planning to set up an office in China, Mr al Mamari said. The UAE is Oman's main market for tourists from the GCC.

"The Omani government is likely to maintain its orientation towards high-quality tourism, with the intention of attracting visitors to its heritage, history and archaeology rather than its sea, sun and sand, although the latter attractions are also stimulating inbound tourism flows to the sultanate," analysts at Euromonitor International said.

"While there was previously a rather cautious approach to tourism in the sultanate, the pace of change is now picking up. The duration of a transit visa has, for example, been extended from 24 to 72 hours.

"Visas are no longer required for GCC citizens and expatriates residing in the Gulf will be granted a two-week tourist entry visa on arrival."

Tips for entertaining with ease

·         Set the table the night before. It’s a small job but it will make you feel more organised once done.

·         As the host, your mood sets the tone. If people arrive to find you red-faced and harried, they’re not going to relax until you do. Take a deep breath and try to exude calm energy.

·         Guests tend to turn up thirsty. Fill a big jug with iced water and lemon or lime slices and encourage people to help themselves.

·         Have some background music on to help create a bit of ambience and fill any initial lulls in conversations.

·         The meal certainly doesn’t need to be ready the moment your guests step through the door, but if there’s a nibble or two that can be passed around it will ward off hunger pangs and buy you a bit more time in the kitchen.

·         You absolutely don’t have to make every element of the brunch from scratch. Take inspiration from our ideas for ready-made extras and by all means pick up a store-bought dessert.

 

FIXTURES

UAE’s remaining fixtures in World Cup qualification R2
Oct 8: Malaysia (h)
Oct 13: Indonesia (a)
Nov 12: Thailand (h)
Nov 17: Vietnam (h)
 

Where to buy and try:

Nutritional yeast

DesertCart

Organic Foods & Café

Bulletproof coffee

Wild & The Moon

Amasake

Comptoir 102

DesertCart

Organic Foods & Café

Charcoal drinks and dishes

Various juice bars, including Comptoir 102

Bridgewater Tavern

3 Fils

Jackfruit

Supermarkets across the UAE

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Joker: Folie a Deux

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson

Director: Todd Phillips 

Rating: 2/5

The biog

Place of birth: Kalba

Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren

Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken

Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah

Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”

Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Cargoz%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Premlal%20Pullisserry%20and%20Lijo%20Antony%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2030%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Seed%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
How to report a beggar

Abu Dhabi – Call 999 or 8002626 (Aman Service)

Dubai – Call 800243

Sharjah – Call 065632222

Ras Al Khaimah - Call 072053372

Ajman – Call 067401616

Umm Al Quwain – Call 999

Fujairah - Call 092051100 or 092224411

The specs

Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors

Power: 480kW

Torque: 850Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)

On sale: Now


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