Gulf Air to launch direct Oman flight

Oman is seeking to drop the ‘Middle East’ tag, and with the help of Gulf Air, capitalise on its Indian Ocean location in a bid to attract tourists from the UK.

Gulf Air president and chief executive, James Hogan told TravelMole that the Middle East has “bad connotations” for UK travellers, so instead Oman will sell itself more as a part of Arabia, with its associated history and culture.

Oman attracts 22,500 UK tourists a year at present, and is aiming to double this in five years. By contrast neighbouring Dubai attracts 450,000 UK tourist a year. In fact, some of Oman’s visitors are tourists that have been sold the destination because Dubai’s hotels were full.

But Oman Tourism director UK and Ireland Alison Cryer told TravelMole that Oman was not chasing after Dubai’s business. She said: “Oman is a very different product to Dubai. We have no intention of competing with Dubai.” She added that the destinations could work well together because they are only a three-hour drive apart.

“Dubai has paved the way for the region by opening it up to visitors from the UK”, said Ms Cryer.

Oman has three UNESCO heritage sites and sells itself on the basis of a rich cultural history and natural environment. Ms Cryer says the destination is focussing on niche markets – discerning travellers, including families, and those with a sense of adventure.

Destinations like Oman are capitalising on the marketing power of their national carrier. In this instance Gulf Air is jointly owned by the Kingdom of Bahrain, Oman and the UAE, so works with all three states.

Mr Hogan said: “All throughout the Arabian Gulf as oil starts to run out, tourism will become more important because it is an industry and drives improvements in infrastructure and employment, which promotes economic development.”

The current drive is for Oman, because Gulf Air launches direct non-stop daily flights to its capital, Muscat, on June 21.

Ms Cryer said: “It is in everyone’s interest to work closely together – with airlines and tour operators.”

Since opening a London office last November, Oman Tourism has built relationships with nine operators including Kuoni, Cox and Kings and Abercrombie and Kent.

As well as marketing through Gulf Air, destinations like the UAE and Bahrain have tried to raise their profile for tourism with big sporting events. Abu Dhabi hosted the golf sand tournament sponsored by Gulf Air. And in Bahrain, the first ever Grand Prix event in the Middle East took place this April. It was also sponsored by Gulf Air and attracted guests like the King of Spain, Crown Prince of Monaco and Prince Andrew.

Gulf Air head of corporate affairs Sadek Karam said: “A lot of people have misconceptions about the region from reading the newspapers and when they attend events like this that are well organised and co-ordinated it is impressive and gives them a chance to see what the region can offer.”

No similar event is planned for Oman because it would not be in keeping with the image that its tourism authorities are trying to promote. However, significant development is taking place. The vast Shangri-La resort, Barr Al Jissah, will open next year with 683 rooms and The Wave, a residential leisure resort incorporating hotels, a golf course, yacht club and spa will open in 2008.

Oman is already popular with the German and Swiss markets according to Mr Hogan, and he thinks it will only take three or four years for Oman to establish itself “as one of the world’s top tourism destinations”.