I recently attended the debut of a new product and service in the local market. The organisers grabbed the audience with well-thought-out content that merged artificial intelligence, human connection, and the diversity of natural colors and cultures.
As in most events, artists performed cultural traditions such as dancing and playing instruments to celebrate the occasion.
Culture has emerged as a product in both commercial and tourism campaigns. It is a major driver of economic development. These are experiences that combine beaches with historical sites, culinary and artistic attractions, and natural wonders.
I reflect on how deep cultural performances and the exhibition of traditional musical instruments have been commercialised. They are framed in a captivating way to highlight the exotic while marketing their product in an aura of rituals.
It is all designed to enthrall and generate profits. We have seen this at festivals, tourism campaigns, desert camps, hotels, and various occasions where ‘authentic culture’ is being explored.
Besides economic and financial benefits, tourism is also an instrument of social change; it is difficult to open one’s borders to the world while maintaining a conservative mindset or lifestyle. Interactions shape people.
However, leisure and scientific tourism challenge social values and cultural norms, and it may influence the social process of acculturation.
Oman is eyeing raising the number of tourists to 11 million by 2040, with fort visits, museums, arts and crafts, geosites, and architecture as key components for economic diversification. Its touristic narratives are presented as traditional and welcoming while simultaneously commodifying its heritage, culture, and natural environment.
Nearly every Omani city has its fort. They are part of Oman’s ancient past, but little or no historical information is supplied at such sites.
Blessed with splendid beaches within its 3,165 km coastline, Oman is known for its seafaring traditions. Museums and galleries highlight the significance of the sea throughout Oman’s 5,000-year-old history.
Natural resources, such as seas, dunes, mountains, and oases, are subject to tourism consumption. In 2023, the Daymaniyat Islands Reserve saw a 73 per cent increase in visits. Barr al Hickman's clean nature, home to various birds and fish, has made it a must-do destination for divers and tourists. Geological adventures ranging from ‘gravel to sand and salt’ and scenic beauty are important drivers of natural tourism.
Tourism growth frequently results in improvement and expansion. Still, it can also cause the weakening of local culture and increase levels of environmental degradation.
Culinary tours are mushrooming, and dining with a local family is a growing trend. The same may be said for foreign tourists staying with locals in their homes and owner-run lodgings offering special ‘authentic’ accommodations.
The interaction between local citizens and tourists involves the expectations of both visitors and entertainers. It is a discourse that fits both the giver and the receiver.
Omani peacefulness has become the defining feature of Oman's identity; what is at risk in the modernisation process is a new style of articulating the past and the future. Tourism adjusted for travellers alters historical perspectives. As cities’ landscapes change, so do perceptions of their histories.
Within the literature review, presenting Orientalised tourism entails influencing visitors’ perceptions of music, clothing, perfumes, and make-believe, such as Arabian tales based on the imagery of gardens, rugs, veiled women, princes, and princesses. ‘Orientalism’, a form of reflexive staged authenticity, is socially constructed to enchant visitors; the romanticised interpretation of stories about people, trade, and inhospitable terrains.
It all started with the many legends of flying carpets to Aladdin, Ali Baba, Sinbad, and the novel Arabian Nights adapted into films and musicals and incorporated into popular culture.
Stories evolved into legends and myths, providing the imagination with captivating narratives; the exotic also functions as marketing tools. Despite the accelerated pace of modernisation, oldness and timelessness are powerful dynamics.
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