Continuous cloudy weather, thick fog on the mountains and off and on drizzling in the city, are making Salalah a perfect destination for holidaymakers. Soon after the announcement of Eid holidays, inquiries for accommodation and important places in Salalah started from all quarters and no wonder Salalah is treating the holidaymakers nicely.
Lot of people have come from north of Oman and other GCC countries, which is reflected in long queues of cars on the routes leading to tourist locations.
Restaurant managers are seen “very busy” managing their guests. “Soon after the announcement of the holiday we started preparing for new visitors at our restaurant. Even though we are opening early and closing late, we are keeping very busy and feel sorry that sometimes many customers have to wait despite our best efforts,” said Jagdish, manager at a restaurant.
A visitor at his restaurant admitted huge rush and said since there was no space to sit, he requested for parcel of some food items which also took some half-an-hour to deliver.
“But no worries, the weather here is so pleasant that we are enjoying every moment and for us there is no rush of time. We are on holiday and are enjoying every bit of it. Compared to Muscat, Salalah is very pleasant and I recommend my friends to visit Salalah to beat the heat,” said Benoy, who decided to spend seven out of nine days of holiday in Salalah.
An official of the Ministry of Tourism in Salalah said all the tourists sites in Salalah are witnessing huge rush. He assured that the tourist spots are clean and approachable by vehicles.
When asked about support the ministry is offering to the tourists, he said: “We have set up information centres at important places and most of the hotels and furnished apartments have printed tourist guides to assist the visitors about places to go in and around Salalah.”
“Our guide is aimed at assisting newcomers because sometimes they get confused that important sites are located in which direction. This is our effort to divide as per directions to make their visit plan easy,” he said.
Roaming around leisurely, according to Jack, a visitor from the UAE, is also a great fun. “I just take one direction and keep on going. Keep some eatables in my car, and sit and eat anywhere we feel like. My family is also enjoying and are very happy to indulge in the beauty of Salalah. Hoteliers are happy over 9-day holiday, as they are receiving guests on daily basis. “Tourists are coming in groups, some for five days, some for three days and four days. This makes us easy to manage and do good business. In short holidays all the guests come on same date and we are not able to accommodate all. Long holidays are good for hotels and good for the tourists as well,” said a front desk executive at a three-star hotel.
Since four more days are left for Eid holidays, Salalah is expecting influx of visitors in coming days.
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