​Awaiting Eid holiday in Oman with bated breath

Hotels and tour operators in Oman are waiting with bated breath for an expected flood of calls after the Sultanate officially declares the Eid holidays.

With Eid falling on Friday, September 1, residents in Oman are yet to be notified of when the holidays fall, and can therefore only make their travel plans once this has been confirmed.

“We have had lots of families and couples book reservations, but they are unable to confirm their stays because they are awaiting the Eid holidays,” said Vijay Handa, cluster general manager for Ras Al Jinz Turtle Reserve. “We are expecting many of them to confirm their reservations the moment the holidays are announced, and so the resort staff have been instructed to stay on alert because we are likely to be flooded with calls throughout this week.

“We have had many confirmed bookings from the other GCC nations, and they are sure to enjoy this unique experience of watching the turtles this weekend,” he added.

Firas Rashid, director of sales and marketing at Anantara Jabal Akhdar, added: “We have been taking calls for Eid throughout this month, because the holidays were already declared in the other Arab nations, but surprisingly, a lot of these calls have also come in from Omani families.

“The days that all of them are keen on are Thursday, Friday and Saturday, because it is well known now that Friday is Eid, so Thursday is almost definitely a holiday.

“Because this is peak season for us, we are unable to hold places for guests because they are non-refundable,” he added. “There have been many potential visitors requesting that, but we are expected to be full this Eid.”

Mohammed Shafiqul Islam, general manager of New Star LLC, a travel agent in Oman, had also instructed his staff to be on standby once the official announcement comes through.

“We’ve had many people tell us they will call us once the announcement of the holidays has been made,” he said. “They are all really keen to spend a few days away from the city, so the moment the holidays are announced, we know that the phones will be ringing continuously.

“Many people have chosen to go to Salalah because of the Khareef season, while others have planned short breaks abroad, in places such as Sri Lanka and Malaysia,” he added.