CSR, THE OMANI WAY
The local focus has carried on through to the hotel’s CSR efforts. Another initiative to support the local community, for example, will be the resort’s ‘Friday Souk’, which will take place each week in the courtyard. Omanis from local villages will have the opportunity to sell their handicrafts to guests, whether it’s jewellery, pottery or paintings. The resort has also been supporting a group of local women who sew traditional Omani scarves, which the resort will give to guests as souvenirs.
Darwin says: “Our company is huge on CSR, and we really believe in giving back to the community. Every Friday we will have a souk where we are going to invite all the local vendors from the villages — pottery, handicraft, weaving, and we’re going to have a lady making Omani bread. We will complement it with an F&B offering and Omani folk dancing, and obviously the villages will get good revenue from the guests.
“Secondly, we are teaching English to the local schools in the village as part of giving back to the community. We’re also teaching English to our Omani team members who are not that advanced in English yet.”
“In terms of the environment, we’ve got various tree planting campaigns, we’ve already got a mountain clean-up campaign planned for the near future. Having CSR is important in any hotel or resort, but certainly in our location, it’s a sensitive subject that we respect.”
Certainly, when constructing the project, more than 200 trees and plants from the original site were conserved in their original location. Furthermore, the team has name tagged all the plants in English and Arabic so guests can learn more about the local plant species.
Gandhi also points to the artwork in the rooms as being from local photographers and artists, with woven ceilings inspired from local crafts and typical Omani doors found in villages nearby. All the rooms were designed with custom-made Omani furniture, with the spa-like bathroom carved out of sustainable material from the local area, with even the spa treatments and F&B outlets incorporating local ingredients to lend authenticity to the venue.
She reveals the resort will also house a ‘museum library’ where interactive stations will allow guests to learn more about the Omani culture, the different areas of the country and local attractions.
RECREATION ATTRACTION
Allowing guests to experience the local heritage and attractions is a big part of the ambitions of the team. In light of this, recreation will play an important role at the resort, with mountaintop sunrise yoga, stargazing, archery, quad biking, adventure hiking and mountain biking, and excursions to nearby heritage attractions such as the UNESCO World Heritage site Birkat al Mouz, and the ancient city of Nizwa.
Heading up operations is director of spa & recreation, Kim Milton. At the resort itself, recreation includes the cliff-edge infinity pool, a fitness centre, tennis court and Anantara Spa. The spa will offer a hammam, five treatment rooms, private outdoor relaxation areas, and an indoor swimming pool. It will also cater to children with a dedicated kids and teens’ club. Milton highlights the spa’s different treatments which cater to both men and women, with the signature experiences using local produce and ingredients including the Damask rose, frankincense and pomegranates.
| Advertisement |
Search our database of more than 2,700 industry companies
