Oman's visa-free entry has boosted domestic tourism

 

Compared to 2021, the number of tourists coming to Sultanate increased by 348% in 2022.

Muscat (Urdu Point Latest News. March 14, 2023) Domestic tourism started getting a boost from the Gulf Kingdom of Oman's visa-free entry offers for foreigners. According to local media, the main reason for the increase in tourist arrivals in Oman is the opening of visa-free entry for people from 103 countries. Proved to be important for promotion, the decision was taken to provide visa-free facilities to the tourism industry in Oman subject to certain terms and conditions.
According to the latest statistics released by the National Center for Statistics and Information (NCSI), Oman received 2.9 million tourists in 2022, a 348% increase in the number of tourists in 2022 compared to 2021. The revenue of 3 and 5 star hotels increased by 50.8% to 20.79 million Omani Rials at the end of January 2023 compared to the same period in 2022.


The data shows that the occupancy rate increased by 31.3% to 53.7% compared to 40.9% during the same period in 2022, while the number of guests in 3 and 5 star hotels was 1 lakh 73. 313 thousand, which is an increase of 65 percent by the end of January 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. A Royal Oman Police official said that India remains a major market for tourism purposes, with Indian tourists being among the 30 countries that are allowed entry on arrival, provided they have entry visas from the US, Canada, UK, Schengen. , or hold a residence permit from Japan or one of the GCC countries, the residence/work permit must be for one of the occupations approved by the Government of Oman.
Apart from India, the other 29 countries include Armenia, Azerbaijan, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Albania, Laos, Kyrgyzstan, Mexico, Vietnam, Bhutan, Guatemala, Belarus, Cuba, Panama, Peru, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkistan.

The ROP official added that there was an option for tourists from 103 countries to stay for more than 14 days, after the specified period, travelers from the countries can apply for an e-visa with a fee of 20 Samani Riyals for a period of one month. Apply online, they can also apply for a multi-entry visa for one year, provided their stay does not exceed one month on each visit, subject to fulfilling certain conditions.
Major countries whose citizens are allowed to enter Oman without a visa for 14 days include Portugal, Sweden, Norway, Italy, Bulgaria, Switzerland, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia, Georgia, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Belgium, Romania, Slovenia, Finland, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Cyprus, Ukraine, Spain, Czech Republic, Austria, Ireland, United Kingdom, Poland, Slovakia, France, Netherlands, Venezuela, Colombia, Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil, These include Japan, Thailand, South Africa, Russia, China, the United States, Turkey, South Korea, New Zealand, Iran, Australia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Canada, Malaysia, and Singapore.