Sheikh Mubarak said the Holiday Inn Seeb Muscat is on track to open in December 2011 following the contracting agreement with Muscat-based Al Rawahi International.

“Oman is committed to developing the hospitality sector and Action Hotels is equally as committed to playing a role in this development with a fixed eye on mid-scale segment,” said Sheikh Mubarak.

By 2012, Action Hotels will add more than 2,000 mid-scale rooms across key Middle East gateways, three of which will fly InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) flags – one Staybridge property and two Holiday Inn hotels.

Holiday Inn is the leading midscale hotel brand of IHG, the world’s largest hotel company by number of rooms.

In 2007, IHG announced the $1-billion relaunch of Holiday Inn to ensure improved quality and consistency in more than 4,000 hotels worldwide by the end of 2010.

IHG’s Kirk Kinsell, president EMEA, said the group looks forward to further strengthening its partnership with Action Hotels through its third IHG-managed property, following on from the Holiday Inn Seef and the Staybridge Dana Tower in Bahrain both scheduled to open in 2012.

The OITE-organised trade fair, which took place at Oman International Exhibition Centre in May, was inaugurated by Ahmed Sulaiman Saleh Al Maimani, undersecretary for administrative, financial and regional affairs at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

The event provided a platform for outbound tourism organisations to promote their services to the fast-growing tourism market in Oman with more than 50 companies representing the travel and tourism sector and new exhibitors from Italy, Germany, Indonesia, India, Turkey, Thailand, Iran, the UAE and Oman.

First-time participant, the southern Italian region of Puglia, was one of the most visited stands, not only by Omanis interested in new travel destinations but also by entrepreneurs looking for potential partnerships with Italy.

And Oman Tourism College also got together with the Italian Embassy in Muscat, to promote new courses for its students and promote the country.

“We are pleased with OTM as it provided us with a good window to the sultanate’s business potential. We look forward to being back in Oman in the near future,” said Caterina Carannante, operations director at Langworth which promotes Puglia.

Another exhibitor debuting at OTM this year was Munich Airport. Florian Potsch, business division aviation head of incoming and hub marketing said: “The non-stop flight between Muscat and Munich since October has helped promote tourism between the two countries. The feedback we generated was good and positive. Our main goal was to generate awareness about Munich and Bavaria as prime destinations for leisure travellers and medical tourists from Oman.”

Besides showcasing inbound and outbound travel, OTM 2010 also highlighted medical tourism featuring medical speciality centres from Iran, India and Thailand.

According to Aqeel Bokisha, consultant to the chief executive at exhibitor Bangkok Hospital Medical Centre: “There are 60,000 Omanis visiting Thailand a year and 141,000 from the UAE seeking medical treatment.”

Dr Rostam Sowlat, of Shiraz Medical Hospital in Iran, said: “Iran’s medical facilities are popular among Omanis who visit for laparoscopic surgery and infertility treatments. With this event, we hope to build a network with local medical centres here in Muscat.”

Peter Hill, Oman Air’s chief executive officer said: “Oman Air supports this event as a sponsor with the objective of seizing the valuable opportunity to promote our summer holidays designed to attract more holidaymakers from the GCC, European and Asian countries to Oman. OTM is our platform to promote our recently launched destinations.”

Among the campaigns highlighted was ‘Now is the time’ which offers special summer deals for Europeans including high-quality, week-long accommodation and return flight packages to the sultanate, over the summer months.

Showcased during the event were the airline’s new summer destinations including Kuala Lumpur, Ras Al Khaimah, Al Ain, Lahore, Islamabad, Dar Es Salam and Kathmandu as well as Milan, which will be added during the winter schedule.

Waterfalls in the middle of the desert, giant canyons filled with flowers, birds and thousands of camels are just some of the attractions. Visitors can also follow the frankincense trail, visit the heritage sites including the tomb of Bin Ali or explore some of the many dive sites.

The area’s growing popularity is evident with the opening of the new Salalah Marriott Resort, the first Marriott hotel in the sultanate. The property is situated on the white sandy beaches of Mirbat Cove and at the foot of Jebel Samhan and is part of the prestigious Mirbat Beach project.

The secluded hotel features 237 well-appointed rooms offering views of the scenic beach or mountains. With king and twin rooms as well as spacious suites available, the resort is ideal for families looking for tranquillity. The resort also offers a choice of studio, one and two-bedroom chalets – scheduled to open this month. The executive guest rooms and suites feature high-definition flat-screen TVs along with high-speed internet access and Marriott’s renowned bed and bath linen.

Dining facilities include Sumhuram all-day restaurant, the Cove English Pub, which boasts its popular fried cheese-cake, the Dhofar Piano Lounge at the lobby level and the Wharf Pool Bar.

Also opened earlier this month were the Al Dana seafood restaurant, serving fresh seafood and produce from the local area, the Mirbat Arabic Café and the Havana cigar lounge, are also opening this month.

The Darbat Executive Lounge which opens later this month will be available for guests staying in executive rooms or suites offering complimentary snacks, drinks and refreshments.

Recreational amenities include a 2,000-sq-m swimming pool, the largest in Oman with a swim-up juice bar, private beach access, a separate pool and playground area for children, on-site diving and snorkelling facilities as well as the Frankincense SPA by Chivana.

The resort also houses a retail outlet selling local handicrafts, made by Omani women, and has plans to open a salon in the near future.

According to Germinal Garcia, general manager: “The resort offers guests a complete holiday experience with Marriott’s comfort in an unmatched natural landscape.”

While still in its teething stages, the hotel is already popular among Omanis over the weekends (which stretch from Wednesday to Friday) with occupancies ranging between 70 and 80 per cent.

The resort is offering special rates this Ramadan at OR30 ($78) ++ for a single as double on room only basis, OR40 ++ for a single as double inclusive of breakfast or late night Suhoor and OR50 ++ for a single as double inclusive of Iftar.

Salalah has emerged as a popular tourist destination due to its wide array of historical, natural and heritage sites such as the summer palace of the Queen of Sheba, found at the city’s ancient port of Sumhuran, which has been declared a Unesco World Heritage Site.

Adventurers can also visit the lost desert city of Ubar, the Baobab Forest, which has a tree more than 2,000 years old, and the fortified ruins of Al Balid.

The annual Salalah Tourism Festival held at the Municipality Showground during al khareef is another favourite tourist attraction.

“Aside from its numerous fascinating locations, Salalah also has cooler weather compared to other parts of Oman during the summer, so it has strong potential as a tourism hub,” said Salem Al Mamari, director general of tourism promotions, Oman Ministry of Tourism.

“The ministry has lined up several initiatives which will further boost the city’s appeal to local, regional and international travellers.

“We have commissioned a specialised company to draw up a concrete strategy for attracting more Gulf travellers into the city especially during the festive summer months.”

Almost 45,000 travellers from Saudi Arabia visited Salalah over the last two years and Oman’s Ministry of Tourism sent a delegation to participate in the Saudi Tourism Show in Riyadh from June 1 to 4.

Naji Abi Farah, country director of sales and marketing commented that this is a part of the company strategy to promote Oman both locally and internationally. “Our main focus during the OTM was to promote our managed hotels in the sultanate including the Areen Youth Hostels, being managed by the Flamingo Hotel Management Company, and to create better awareness about the other hotels in the region as well as our new summer packages,” he said.

The Golden Tulip Seeb is currently offering a GCC summer weekend rate for a single standard room at OR25 ($65), double standard at OR30 and junior suite at OR70 (plus 17 per cent service charge). The offer is valid between Wednesdays and Fridays and until August 27, 2010.