The direct added value of the tourism sector has been recorded at a value of RO 717,905 million at the end of 2019, up by 4.1% compared to the year 2018, when it reached RO 689,482 million, according to the data issued by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

The added value of tourism comprises 2.5% of the Sultanate GDP, as the sector is required to double its efforts during the next two decades in order to achieve the strategic goal set by the government of bringing the total contribution of the tourism sector in the GDP to 6% by the year 2040.

The NCSI data also show that the deficit in the tourism balance declined by 7.1% during 2019, reaching RO 256,386 million, compared to RO 276,103 million in the year 2018. The tourism balance is measured by comparing the inbound tourism expenditure with the outbound tourism spending. Accordingly, the decline may be due to an increase in the inbound tourism expenditure versus a smaller increase in the outbound tourism spending during the same period.

The data also point out that the total tourism revenue in the Sultanate by the end of 2019 reached RO 1.3 billion, of which domestic tourism accounted for 47.1%, while inbound tourism contributed by 52.9%.

The same NCSI data, which is included in the Tourism Statistics Bulletin, indicate that the number of visitors to the Sultanate continued to increase during the past four years (2015-2019), with a growth rate of 7.4%, reaching 3.5 million visitors during 2019, compared to 2.6 million visitors in the year 2015.

The data state that the number of visitors to the Sultanate in 2019 increased by 8.2%, compared to 2018.

GCC citizens ranked first among visitors from other countries, with a rate of 40.3%, reaching 1.4 million visitors, while Asian tourists ranked second, recording 24.8% of the total number, and European visitors ranked third, by 20.7%.

According to the data, entertainment topped the list of purposes of inbound tourism, by 46.4%, bringing the number of tourists to about 1.6 million. Family and friends visit was the second, reaching 30.5%, followed by business trip, at 11.7%.

The visitors who stayed more than one night during their trip to the Sultanate was 71.3% of the total visitors, reaching 2.5 million visitors, compared to 28.7% visitors who stayed only a day, with their number reaching 1 million.

The general spending rate by the visitors to the Sultanate during the period from 2015 to 2019 increased by 17%, reaching RO 684.7 million during the year 2019, compared to RO 364.8 million during the year 2015. The average visitor's spending during the same period increased by 9%, reaching RO 195.3 in 2019, compared to RO 138.5 in 2015.

The air transport services expenditure during the year 2019 was the highest rate of spending by 32.4%, reaching RO 221.8 million, compared to RO 202 million in the year 2018, recording an increase of 9.8%, followed by spending on accommodation, which increased by 30.1%, while the expenditure on food and drinks, as well as shopping was recorded at 13.5% and 7.9%, respectively. 

According to the same data, the number of nights spent by tourists in the Sultanate during the year 2019 reached 19.9 million nights, with an average of 8 nights per tourist.

The highest number of visitors spent the nights engaging in recreational and leisure visitors, by 50.9% of the total number of visitor nights, reaching 10.2 million nights, compared to 10.4 million nights spent by entertainment and recreation visitors during the year 2018, falling by 2.2%. This was followed by visitors spending nights with families and friends, by 28.2%.

The data also point out that outbound tourism witnessed a growth during the period of (2015 to 2019) by 5.2%, increasing from 5.4 million visitors in the year 2015, compared to 6.6 million visitors during the year 2019, when the number of Omani visitors was recorded at 67.9% of the total departing visitors, reaching 4.5 million visitors. About 5 million tourists visited during the year 2018, down by 10.1%, while 63.7% of the outbound tourists spent more than one night at their destination, reaching 4.2 million visitors, compared to 2.4 million visitors who returned to the Sultanate on the same day, reaching 36.3%.

The data show that the increase in total expenditure of departing visitors during the period from 2015-2019 reached 18.2%, up from RO 481.2 million in the year 2015 to RO 941.1 million during the year 2019.

The expenditure on shopping was estimated at RO 236.7 million, recording 25.2% of the total spending, while the spending on air transport services represented 20.3% of the total expenditure, which is equivalent to RO 190.7 million. This was followed by spending on food and drinks by a percentage of 17.9%, while the spending on the shelter service was recorded at 17.9%.

For its part, domestic tourism contributed by 47.1% of the total tourism production, reaching RO 608.7 million, 52.9%, which was the contribution percentage of the inbound tourism in the year 2019, at RO 684.7 million.

The total revenues of the tourism sector in the Sultanate in 2019 reached RO 1.3 billion, compared to RO 1.2 billion in the year 2018, up by 4.9%.

The accommodation and shelter services topped the list of activities that contribute to spending on domestic tourism, by 24%, equivalent to RO 146.1 million, followed by specific tourism services that include shopping at a rate of 13.7%, which is equivalent to RO 83.2 million, while travel and tourism agency services ranked third with a percentage of 13.5%, equivalent of RO 82.1, followed by air transport services and land transport services, which ranked fourth and fifth, with percentage of 12.4% and 7.6%, respectively.

The number of hotels in the Sultanate during the year 2019 reached 491, including 26 of 5-star hotels, 24 of 4-star hotels, 38 of 3-star hotels, 55 of two-star hotels and 348 other hotel units, including one-star hotels, unrated hotels, rest houses and hotel apartments. The number of manpower in hotels by the end of 2019 reached 20,057 workers.

The data conclude that the total revenue generated from hotel activities at the end of 2019 reached RO 276.6 million, where the number of guests of hotels reached 3.9 million, the number of nights spent was 3.8 million nights, and the room occupancy rate reached 37.4%.