SALALAH, JAN 22 - As the winter has turned Salalah salubrious, charters and cruises are bringing in tourists from all over the world virtually keeping all the hotels occupied from October to April.
What foreign tourists find luring in Salalah are its vast and clean beaches, clear and sunny sky which give them big relief from the biting cold back home. Even as the demand for Salalah is becoming high among European tourists, their choice of activities is also changing.
Some 10 years ago, Salalah had been a destination mainly for retired couple, but now with growing facilities and better connectivity, the destination is attracting young men and women who come here along with their children. This segment of tourists ask for more facilities in terms of entertainment and outdoor activities, as they are not content only with lying on the beaches and swimming in hotel pools.
“The country’s natural settings are undoubtedly great and we also see efforts being made by the local authorities to improve upon them. What we find missing here is activities for young children, as we have three children, two boys and a girl. They want to do water sport or play beach games. It is not very difficult for them to introduce such activities because they have very big beaches, which are clean and nice,” said Ernst, a German tourist.
Marco Capitani, Contracting Manager of Veratour, sought new facilities to be added to Salalah to entertain the tourists. “Like, I would suggest introduction of some water sports activities as Salalah and Mirbat have beautiful beaches. They can easily think of surface water sports – barefoot skiing is waterskiing without skis. Boating, boat-racing etc are other options and I would highly recommend beach ATVs because tourists go anywhere to have fun.”
“We find Mirbat special for tourists from Italy due to its landscape, marvellous colour of the sea etc. The destination is emerging as an important destination in the GCC. It has huge potential to serve the commercial needs of the country. The potential could be tapped fully with facilities like 18-hole golf course, sand motor bikes, etc. The destination has beautiful sunset view. As such, some sea activities to fulfil the needs of tourists should be developed here,” he said. He suggested some easy entertainment facilities in Mirbat. “Because the desert is too far from the city, and everyone is not interested in doing long tiring excursions. There should be something ‘short and smart’ keeping in mind individual and family tourists.” Some cycling enthusiasts hailed the interiors of Salalah good for cycling. They wanted some proper arrangement for tourists so that they can enjoy cycling in Salalah.
“The good thing in Salalah and all of Oman is that there is a hard shoulder, so it is like a bike path in Germany. You can get food and drink in every little town and people are very friendly and helpful. A number of times, drivers stopped to give me water or fruits,” said another tourist from Germany.
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