In a bid to increase presense in the India market,in its fourth year of inception, the tourism board is now channelising its efforts in creating inroads in the tier 2 cities of India. Talking about the tourism boards decision to enter tier 2 cities Lubaina Sheerazi, India representative, Ministry of Tourism, Oman, said, “Oman has seen a very positive influx of Indian arrivals in the last few years. In the year 2012, tourist arrivals to Oman amounted to 35.6 per cent increase as compared to 2011. In the last 3 years, we conducted multicity road show in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Chennai. We felt we needed to tap Tier 1 cities of India first before we enter into Tier 2. Having established and promoted our destination effectively over the years in the metro cities, we felt this year we can penetrate into tier 2 cities of Pune, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad.”
The recently concluded road shows saw encouraging response and were well attended by travel agents and tour operators in each city. Through these road shows, Oman Tourism educated the Indian travel trade in the cities of Pune, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad on the potential of Oman as an ideal destination for travelers looking for luxurious short haul vacations.The road show comprised of 6 delegates representing four tour operators, one property and one airline. The following list of participants attended the road show: Tour Oman, Oman World Tourism, Zahara Tours, Gulf Ventures, Radisson Blu Muscat and Oman Air.
Sheerazi further added, “Indians connect with a destination like Oman as its rich culture, tradition and hospitality is something that they will identify with and appreciate besides its picturesque locations. Even Bollywood couldn’t resist its charms and Oman was beautifully captured in the recently launched film ‘Once Upon A Time in Mumbai Dobaara’ which was partially shot in Oman. We had associated with this movie as an initiative to popularize the destination in India. Our future plans include promoting Oman as a wedding destination and to continue our association with feature films in India.”
Just 3 hours flight away from India, Oman is well connected through Oman Air, Air India, Jet Airways and Indigo that run several direct flights to Muscat from various Indian cities. Recently, Spice Jet also announced the launch of a direct flight from Ahmedabad to Muscat that will run thrice a week.
