Jebel Sifah is one of two developments from Muriya Tourism Development totalling 13 hotels and 2900 rooms. Jebel Sifah is one of two developments from Muriya Tourism Development totalling 13 hotels and 2900 rooms.

New Developments
All of these ongoing projects across the hotel sector, which according to our own figures total an approximate pipeline of 3638 hotel rooms, are set to combine with a series of initiatives from Oman’s Ministry of Tourism, including the new ‘Yes... to Oman’ campaign, launched in January 2014, which will be run across the ministry’s website and a range of social media, and will include photography of the country’s most popular tourist sites.

Some of the other developments include the ongoing expansion of operations at Salalah international airport, which has so far added an additional 1,500 seats per week to the destination, and a recent partnership with the Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) and the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) to raise the awareness of the Gulf as a international cruise destination.

Salim Al Mamari, director general of Tourism Development, Oman Ministry of Tourism praised these developments as “both timely and strategic”, saying “These are truly exciting times for the GCC region’s tourism industry, particularly across the luxury cruise segment, which has demonstrated continuous growth.”

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Hoteliers are also showing their enthusiasm for the ongoing infrastructure developments, with Golden Tulip Seeb Oman’s Fady Abi Khalil saying “the new Airport project, roads and infrastructure under construction, are affecting our hotel’s business positively, not only in terms of rooms, but also, in the outlets, meeting rooms and even recreation facilities.

This can only help with increasing the number of multiple visits and day trips to Muscat of engineers and vendors involved in these projects.”

This is also a view held by Muriya Tourism Development, the developer of two of the largest hospitality projects in Oman, with the 6.2 million square metre Jebel Sifah and 15.6 million square metre Salalah Beach projects totalling 13 hotels and 2900 rooms, displaying their appreciation for the country’s airport developments in particular.

Muriya Tourism Development marketing director Bahaa Hefzallah explains that “some of the biggest opportunities for Oman operators are the re-developments of Muscat and Salalah airports increasing the number of direct flight between Muscat, Salalah and the main cities around the world.

“These will hopefully all work in tandem with the big marketing and promotional campaigns conducted by the Ministry of Tourism, which will all help in boosting our business,” he concludes.