Russian tourist flow to Oman has increased 5 times since the beginning of 2019

During the first quarter of 2019 6,585 Russian tourists visited Oman. This is 4.7 times more than for the same period last year, when 1,393 Russians visited the Sultanate. For the entire 2018 Oman was visited by 10,877 Russians. It is expected that by the end of 2019 the tourist flow from Russia to Oman will increase by at least 2 times. 

Of the 6,585 Russian tourists who visited Oman in 2019, 87% (5,701 people) traveled with a tourist visa, which since 2019 no longer needs to be sponsored by the resident of Oman, and the whole procedure takes place online on web-site. 

The term of issuing an electronic visa is from several hours to several days. Upon arrival in Oman, a printed visa will need to be presented at passport control. Consular fees depend on the type of visa and the period of stay in the country. Thus, the fee for a tourist visa for 10 days will be 5 Omani Rials (11,5 Euros) and for a visa for 30 days - 20 Omani Rials (46,2 Euros). 

According to the Ministry of Tourism of Oman, the growth in the number of Russian tourists was largely influenced by the simplification of a visa regime and the introduction of electronic visas, the opening of the office of the Ministry of Tourism of Oman in Russia, and launching of daily direct flights between Moscow and Muscat by Oman Air 

Among the leading countries in terms of the number of tourists to Oman in the first quarter of 2019 were India (93,161 people), the United Kingdom (38,269 people), France (24,439 people), Germany (23,470 people) and Italy (19,912 people).