Oman gears up for camping season

Oman Sunday 22/September/2019 09:20 AM
By: Times News Service
Oman gears up for camping season

Muscat: Oman is gearing up for camping season beginning in October in the two governorates - North and South Sharqiyah.

As Oman’s Ministry of Tourism (MoT) attaches great interest to this product, all tourism camps have completed preparations to accommodate a big turnout of visitors and tourists by adding more facilities and fulfilling requirements that visitors had asked for when they arrived last season.
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MoT promotes and encourages establishing tourism camps according to the rules and controls in place for securing safety. These camps provide a unique opportunity to all tourists and visitors to enjoy the beautiful vistas of the Omani desert and allow them to participate in different activities.
These camps now provide more accommodation to meet the increasing demand towards this activity. Commenting on the previous season of winter camping, Talal bin Khalfan al Sheibi, the director of Tourism Administration in the Governorate of Al Sharqiyah North, said, “There were a number of positive indicators that encouraged us to receive the new season with great expectation.
“Most of the camps registered an occupancy rate of 100 percent. The tourism administration at the Governorate of Al Sharqiyah North made a number of inspection drives to make sure all preparations made by the camps are in line with the standards specified to attract more visitors.”
“The preparations that were carried out in summer included restoration works, changing furniture, installing insect repellants, adding new rooms, inspecting transportation inside the camps and making sure all licences are valid,” he added.
A total of 13 camps in the Governorate of Al Shariqyah North and five in the Governorate of Al Sharqiyah South provide tourists and visitors with a variety of activities and programs, such sand skiing, sand biking, camel riding and sand surfing. There are also a number of activities that tourists and visitors enjoy at these camps, in addition to the serenity one receives at being away from crowded towns and cities, and experiencing the life of the desert that is characterised by tranquillity and stillness in the presence of the breath-taking beauty of nature.
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Saud bin Hamad Al Alawi, the director of Tourism Administration in the Governorate of Al Sharqiyah South said: “There are five tourism camps which provide world-class hospitality and hotel services and products.
“The tourism camps have become an important tourism product that contribute to the add value of the national economy. In addition, they provide the tourists and visitors with a wide range of options and choices to fully enjoy their time thanks to the varied programs and activities the camps provide.”
Adding to this, Gamal bin Nasir al Alawi, the owner of the Turtle Beach camp, said: “We made tailored preparations as we co-ordinated promotion efforts with travel companies and tour operators and carried out required maintenance works. We have a variety of programs that the tourists and visitors come to enjoy. Among these activities are visits to the turtle reserve, dolphin watching, fishing, and cruises.
Abdulaziz Al Hasni, the owner of Al Reem Desert Camp said: “Every year, we redouble efforts to prepare for the tourist season - such as extension works and maintenance. Every season we offer new programs and activities to keep the tourists and visitors flocking to our camp.

“The tourists and visitors enjoy camel riding, adventures in sand, traditional Omani art, the Bedouin lifestyle and folk music. Sometimes, we offer special activities such celebrating the New Year, in addition to honeymoon and anniversary specials.”

Al Wadhah al Hanai, executive director of Golden Palm Oasis camp said: “Ever since the end of the last season, we have been working on the preparations for the forthcoming one. We added more facilities and programs based on the opinions of our visitors that were collected through social media.”