MUSCAT: The newly build Cruise Arabia has increased Oman expectations that more cruise liners to visit Muscat and Salalah ports this season on the region’s international cruise appeal.
The Ministry of Tourism, Oman, Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority and the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing in the United Arab Emirates are planning to promote the region’s cruise tourism in the international markets.
They made their official regional debut at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) in Dubai in the first week of May 2015 at Dubai World Trade Centre.
The total number of tourists who visited Post Sultan Qaboos in 2013 and 2014 was 321,317 and the number of cruise vessels that visited in 2013 was 115.
“We are expecting more ships this season after the alliance,” said an official of Port Sultan Qaboos.
A spokesperson of Abu Dhabi Ports Company (ADPC) said, “Each port in the Cruise Arabia initiative offers a different range of attractions for visiting passengers, which is exactly what the cruise liners look for.”
About the alliance, a shipping agent Khimji Ramdas, one of the biggest shipping agents in the country, said the alliance would certainly boost tourism and related infrastructure in the region.
