1.3mn visitors arrive in the sultanate

Muscat - A total of 1.3mn visitors arrived in the sultanate till the end of May 2017, according to the Tourism Index Report (TIR) released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI). Most visitors came from other GCC countries, India, Germany, the United Kingdom and the Philippines.

The total number of visitors during May 2017 was 191,000. The number of visitors during the same month in 2016 was 128,000. Among the visitors, the highest number was from GCC touching 90,000 in May.

The report revealed that 477,000 people departed from the sultanate in May. This was 1.7 per cent more than what was registered in the same month in 2016. The departures of Omanis formed 64.5 per cent of the total number in May.

Two thousand visitors arrived in cruise ships in May and there was a 70 per cent drop in the number of such visitors this year compared to the same month in 2016, when it was 7,000. Among the total number of visi- tors 99.6 per cent were Europeans. Of these 92.8 per cent were Germans.

Hotel revenues (3-5 star hotels) reached RO91mn till the end of May. In May alone, the revenue was RO14mn. The total number of guests in 3-5 star hotels in May reached 109,000 compared to 129,000 during the same month last year. In May, the total occupancy rate in 3-5 star hotels decreased to 50.9 per cent compared to 53 per cent occupancy in May 2016.

Hotel revenues (3-5 star hotels) reached RO91mn till the end of May. In May alone, the revenue was RO14mn