Tourism revenue tops OMR1 billion in 2018
Data show that domestic tourism contributed about 50.8% while inbound tourists contributed 49.2% of total revenue of tourism sector in Oman.
MUSCAT: The total revenue of tourism sector in Oman reached OMR1.4 billion at the end of 2018, according to latest data released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).
Data shows that domestic tourism contributed about 50.8 per cent while inbound tourists contributed 49.2 per cent of the total revenue of the tourism sector in Oman. The NCSI data reveals that the direct added value of tourism sector reached OMR788.6 million at the end of 2018, recording an increase of 6.8 per cent compared to 2017, when the direct added value was OMR738.4 million.
The tourism index report indicates that the number of visitors to the Sultanate continually increased during the last eight years (2011 - 2018), with a growth rate of 12.8 per cent to reach 3.2 million visitors in 2018 compared to 1.4 million visitors in 2011. The number of visitors in 2018 increased by 2 per cent compared to 2017.
Nearly 46 per cent of tourists, reaching 1.5 million visitors, visited Oman for entertainment, followed by 32.1 per cent for visiting friends and family and 10.8 per cent for business purposes.
The number of tourists who stayed more than one night during their trip to Oman reached 71 per cent of the total number of visitors, with 2.3 million tourists, compared to 29 per cent for visitors for one-day visitors only, with their numbers reaching 941,000 visitors during the same year.
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nationals topped the list of inbound tourists, with 45.4 per cent, followed by 21.3 per cent Asian visitors and 19 per cent European visitors.
The total expenses of inbound tourists quadrupled during the period of 2011 to 2018 from OMR158.6 million in 2011 to OMR679.2 million at the end of 2018, recording an increase of 23.1 per cent, with an average spending of 9.1 per cent per visitor to reach OMR209.5 compared to OMR113.9 in 2011.
Inbound tourists
Expenditure on accommodation services has been considered as the highest among the expenditures of the inbound tourists, reaching OMR212.5 million, making 31.3 per cent of the total spending of the tourists while visitors expenditure on air transport services ranked second, with the amount reaching OMR202 million, or 29.7 per cent of the total spending of inbound tourists. Spending on nutrition and shopping was 14.7 per cent and 8 per cent, respectively.
The number of nights spent by tourists in 2018 reached 20.3 million nights at a rate of 9 nights per one person where the percentage of visitors for leisure and recreation was the highest, recording 51 per cent of the total number of nights, reaching 10.4 million nights and increasing by 106.9 per cent compared to 2017.
The data also show that the outbound tourism witnessed a slight growth between the period of 2011 and 2018, increasing by 8.7 per cent to reach 6 million tourists in 2018 compared to 3.3 million tourists in 2011 while about 83.8 per cent of outbound tourists in 2018 were Omani nationals, whose number reached 5 million tourists.
About 56.1 per cent of the tourists, equivalent to 3.4 million tourists, spent more than one night at their destinations, compared to 2.6 million who returned on the same day of their arrival.
As much as OMR241.4 million was spent on shopping, or 25.3 per cent of total spending of tourists, while OMR199.8 million was spent on air transport services, or 20.9 per cent, 17.9 per cent spent for food and drinks, and 17.5 per cent the total spending on accommodation services 2018.
Domestic tourism in Oman contributed to 50.8 per cent of the total tourism expenditure till the end of 2018, reaching OMR699.9 million while the total revenue of the tourism sector in Oman at the end of 2018 reached OMR1.4 billion.
Specific tourism services, including shopping, topped the list of activities contributing by 33.9 per cent to local tourism, equivalent to OMR236.9 million while accommodation services contributed by 15.5 per cent to OMR108.7 million, followed by travel agencies activities and tourism services by 10.2 per cent to reach OMR71.5 million, and land and air transport services by 9.7 per cent and 7.8 per cent, respectively.
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