Oman eyes 10-15% rise in tourists arrivals from India in 2016

Oman, which hosted nearly 3 lakhs Indian travellers in 2015, is expecting 15-20 per cent rise in footfalls this year, mainly backed by the wedding destination, and MICE (meetings, incentives, conferencing, exhibitions) segment.
"We have received 2,99,022 tourists from India in 2015, which is 17 per cent growth from 2014. With growing interest in the wedding destination and MICE segments, we are expecting 15-20 per cent growth in travellers visiting from India in 2016," Oman Tourism Ministry, India Representative, Lubaina Sheerazi told PTI here.
She said Oman targets high-end, evolved, neo-educated travellers from India, who are looking for a destination filled with natural beauty and provides authentic Arabian experience.

"Our target segment from India mainly consists of families, couples, business and weddings. And we mostly look at age group between 25-65 years," she added.
Meanwhile, Oman is set to become a major regional centre for MICE, for which the country's Tourism Ministry has established a new Convention Bureau.
"The objective of the Bureau is to support the international and local organisations in hosting their events and cater to their requirements. The main aim is to promote Oman as an ideal destination for the MICE tourism sector," Oman Tourism Ministry Director General of Tourism Promotion Salim Al Mamari said.
Oman saw a growth of 17.7 per cent in total international visitor numbers in 2015 to 2.4 million.

The Arab country has an ambitious new tourism strategy and plans to increase the number of international visitor to 5.3 million by 2040.