There was a time when annual vacation interpreted as a break from the regular schedule or a trip back to the home country. No longer so… more and more people are now heading to exploring new destinations thanks to the competitive deals introduced by travel agents.
There are ‘explore the country’ packages, spa packages, honeymoon packages and for those who would anyways want a trip back to meet with their family, a short trip combined with that to the natural country.
Most of the travel agents indicate an upsurge in the outbound travel from Oman especially during the summer months. While a budget-conscious traveller may opt for a package to the Far East or China, others could opt for a trip to Europe, Australia or New Zealand. Most tour operators also tailor-made packages for a discerning traveller who wants to make the most of his holiday and funds. Some of the exciting summer offers are listed below:
Salalah: Oman Air has introduced some great packages not only for Salalah, the only place in Arabia to receive monsoon, but also to Lebanon, Egypt, Tanzania, Zanzibar, India and Dubai. The 2005 Khareef holiday package has just been announced by Oman Air Holidays. The carrier flies all year round to Salalah with direct flights three times a week from Dubai to Salalah and several flights per day to Salalah from Muscat. With direct flights to Muscat from Dubai, Bahrain, Kuwait, Doha, Beirut, Cairo within the Middle East and GCC, and several departures each day from Muscat to Salalah, Oman Air provides easy and comfortable connections for travel to Salalah this summer. In addition, flights to Salalah from Abu Dhabi are also available through Oman Air Holidays in conjunction with their airline partners. “The past winter has shown a great increase in holiday visitors from the UAE who have now begun to discover the delights of Oman’s best kept secret, the coastal Frankincense city of Salalah with its palm-fringed beaches, five-star beach resorts and lots of historic places to explore,” said Tim Lane Stott manager of Oman Air Holidays. “Salalah is now rightly establishing itself as a year round holiday destination”.
Oman Air Holidays offers a wide range of holiday packages to Oman which include holidays to the Khareef in Salalah, flying on the latest Boeing 737 New Generation aircraft of Oman Air, with a wide variety of hotels to choose from as well as airport transfers, car hire and excursion options.
Turtle delight package Each summer the beaches of Ras Al Jinz south of Muscat and close to Sur host a miracle of nature the breeding season of the Green Backed Turtle. Nearly 20,000 turtles return to the same beaches on which they were born to nest and lay eggs under the protection of the Ras Al Jinz Turtle Conservation Area. Oman Air Holidays offers the Turtle Delights holiday package which combines the opportunity to experience this unique miracle of nature with time to explore Muscat, as well as the ancient capital of Nizwa and the stunning desert terrain of Wahiba sands and the natural springs at Wadi Beni Khaled. With direct flights to Muscat and self-drive car hire the package offers you the freedom to explore Oman and to discover the natural beauty, history and nature of the Sultanate of Oman. The programme is based on three nights stay in Oman and includes hotel accommodation in Ras Al Hadd and Muscat as well as self-drive car hire and flights to Oman with Oman Air.
OTHER OFFERS
• Malaysia Airlines has introduced exciting holiday packages to Malaysia starting at RO250. This includes airfare, three nights/four days stay in a four-star luxury hotel in Kuala Lumpur and daily breakfast. Besides this, the passengers can also travel to Singapore at a nominal additional cost. The special package of nine nights/ten days, covering three popular cities (Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Langkawi) is for RO397 per person. In addition, there is an Explore Malaysia’s Nature Package starting at RO485 per person.
• Kuwait Airways has announced a special hotel package for families visiting Kuwait during summer holidays. The special package is priced at RO52 per night for a double room in a five-star hotel with complimentary breakfast and airport transfers. Children below 12 years can stay free with parents. Further, the airlines is also offering special discount on Muscat-Kuwait-Muscat tickets for passengers availing the summer package. Special discounted fare is also available for a stopover in Dubai.
Mohammed Khairalla, senior manager, Oman, said Kuwait offers a diversity of shopping avenues and multitude of hotels to choose from with first class hospitality and international cuisine. The airline is also offering attractive packages to Amman, Europe and Cairo with Nile cruise between Aswan and Luxor. The special offer is valid till August 31.
• British Airways is offering new incentives to families looking for a summer vacation. The World Traveller scheme is one such choice for flying from Oman to London and beyond. The airline is also offering bargain economy class fares. For example, fares from Oman to London start from RO290, to New York from RO380 while Toronto fares start from RO420.
Orlando blooms this summer with British Airways. Together with the InterContinental group, British Airways in Oman is offering a special holiday packages to Vienna and Brussels.
With British Airways Holidays, the travel company from BA, there is an offer of a worldwide range of hotels, car hire and sightseeing options, starting from less than RO30 per night for the budget traveller, to luxury resorts and cruises.
“We offer a great choice to our customers with seven flights every week from Oman to London, and with our exceptional service offering onboard World Traveller features the most comprehensive range of services and benefits ever for passengers to an economy cabin,” said Sunita Gomes, manager (Oman and Yemen), British Airways.
By Kavita Pandit