Oman’s National Museum receives 1,720 visitors in its first week

Muscat: More than 1,700 visitors were received at the National Museum of Oman in its first week of opening.
Out of the total 1,720, 838 were children and students, 17 were senior nationals and GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) citizens, 10 were part of special categories, 77 were tourists, 191 residents and 587 were nationals and GCC citizens.
Jamal Al Moosawi, acting director general of the National Museum, said he was pleased with the turnout during the first week and hoped for continued success and huge numbers in the near future.
“We are pleased this far with the number of visitors, more importantly we are proud that children and students constituted the highest percentage of visitors, and look forward to engaging with families and all other groups.
“Our objective is to reach 120,000 visitors by the end of the first year of public operation. Special thanks to all those, who have contributed with their valuable opinion and feedback during the first week.”
Social media was also abuzz with discussions on the much awaited museum and registered a huge following in the first week, with 5,732 Twitter followers, 1875 Instagram followers and 790 Facebook followers.
“It’s such a lovely place to visit and reminiscence about the olden days and life in Oman from back in the day up to now, to look at the arms, land and people’s gallery and maritime gallery is definitely recommended,” said Sohail, a visitor to the museum.
Natasha Malik, another resident of Oman, who visited the National Museum on day one was jubilant, “The cinema part and the movie, which they showed about Oman was superb and definitely worth a watch, I got emotional while watching it, it was so well made. Overall, I would say that the entire history of Oman is in that one museum, anything you want to know is all there.
“It’s good for people who like history or who want to know about the country, the best place to visit, the Omani traditions portrayed are really nice, the modern technology and everything else, I strongly recommend.”
The entry fee is OMR1 for Omani and GCC nationals, OMR2 for residents in Oman and OMR5 for tourists. Children and students up to 25 years old, handicapped people and Omani and GCC nationals, who are 60 years and above, will enjoy free entry to the museum.
During the first phase of opening the National Museum to the public, the museum will be open for four days a week (Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday), from 9am until 3pm, from July 30, until September 30, after which updates will be announced on opening it for more days in the week. The ticket desk will close
at 2:30 pm.
Currently, the museum houses 12,583 artefacts, out of which 5,466 have been conserved and are on display, while 7,117 are still in stores.
The museum features 14 permanent galleries and a learning centre, conservation facilities, a cafe and gift shop.