South Al Batinah gears up to welcome tourists during winter season

Muscat : The Governorate of South Al Batinah is preparing to attract tourists from inside and outside the Sultanate of Oman in conjunction with the winter season, which begins in October and continues until the end of April.

Al Muatasem bin Nasser Al-Hilali, Director of the Department of Heritage and Tourism in the South Al Batinah Governorate, said that the South Al Batinah Governorate is expecting good tourism activity this season due to the efforts made to boost tourism sector by various government institutions, including the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism, through promotion, marketing and participation of local and foreign exhibitions. In addition, efforts are being made to meet the demands and needs of this sector.

Al Hilali pointed out that the Governorate of South Al Batinah will have a large share of visitors to the Sultanate of Oman from various countries due to its unique heritage and tourism components.

These components vary and are distributed in all the wilayats of the governorate, including the tourist components represented by beaches, mountains, valleys, water springs, plains and desert sands, and the heritage components represented by the ancient historic sites and shrines of castles, forts, falaj, mosques and ancient archaeological houses.

All the tourist sites in the South Al Batinah Governorate are unique, including (Khibat Al-Jaadan - Ramlet Al-Abyad), which is located in the Wilayat of Nakhal and attracts visitors interested in local sport and international four-wheel-drive racing.

"In addition to setting up temporary winter camps to enjoy the desert atmosphere during the winter season, most of the valleys in the governorate have water and waterfalls are an added attraction, " Al Hilali added.

Al Hilali pointed out that the winter season in the South Al Batinah Governorate attracts a number of tourists looking for rest and relaxation in the heritage and green inns distributed in the villages and wilayats of the governorate, in addition to the presence of some services that cover the needs of tourists. Some high-altitude villages are also characterised by low temperatures, seasonal agricultural crops, and the presence of mountain trails.

Al Muatasem Al Hilali explained that the number of green inns in the South Al Batinah Governorate reached 31 that rely on exploiting agricultural lands for tourism purposes with a good level of cleanliness and service and the availability of green spaces.

There is also a heritage lodge, which is old buildings with a traditional architectural character that are used to accommodate and serve tourists for preserving the architectural heritage of the Sultanate of Oman.

Al Muatasem Al Hilali said that the administration has worked hard to develop and promote some of the heritage and tourist attractions in the governorate through events.