Saturday 21 / December / 2024
The Salalah Khareef 2024 continues to mesmerise tourists with new features that are drawing large crowds not only from domestic tourists but regionally and also the rest of the world.
While the summer heat is pushing the mercury reading up to 50 degrees in most areas of Oman, Salalah’s weather so far, since June, has been recorded at an average of 25 degrees, just half of the roasting heat in Muscat.
But it is not about the weather only. This year, the organisers deserve a huge credit. The seasonal celebrations in Dhofar feature an extended children park, double the size of the entertainment areas, more shopping arcades and a variety of events.
Last year, the Festival in Salalah attracted about 962,000 visitors. The organised this year is going for the million mark. While we are in the middle of the Khareef, the number of visitors who already visited Salalah in the last ten weeks, has matched the statistics of the entire year in 2023. With that fact in mind, the number of tourists in Salalah is well on course to touch, or even exceed is target this year.
With Oman Economic Vision setting a target of 16 million tourists by 2040, Salalah will prominently feature in the build up to achieve that milestone. However, Salalah should not only be promoted during the Khareef Season. It has enough attractions to last throughout the year. It also has abundant opportunities to boost the economy, create SMEs and jobs for graduates.
However, for that happen, the infrastructure would need to be expanded with the help of the private sector. Hotels are always overwhelmed with the higher demands of accommodation. Instead of building more luxury hotels, Salalah needs hotels at budget prices which are affordable to majority of visitors.
The road networks need to be improved, too. To make the trips to the sites of attractions much easier for visitors, more rest areas and restaurants need to be established along the routes. Also, it would help a lot if guesthouses are built near the waterfalls, green hills, historical sites and wadi areas. This way, tourists can stopover overnight without having to go back to the city to their hotels after a long drive.
Currently, the majority of visitors to Salalah are domestic tourists and from the regional countries like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar. The domestic visitors are a mix of both Omanis and expatriates working in the country. They all share the same enthusiasm of what this beautiful southern city has to offer.
Having said all that, Oman would also need to maintain a threshold of the number of tourists to a sustainable level visiting Dhofar. It is justifiable to target a million tourists for this year and Salalah is well on the way to achieve it this time. But how many would be enough in a small city like Salalah without eroding its cultural values? Should the organizers of the Salalah Khareef stick to a million visitors or stretch a little bit more?
That will be the next challenge in the next few years to put a lid on it and not push it up too far to preserve the local heritage while at the same time keep the tourists campaign going.
