Unveiling the Potential of Community Support for Country Tourism: A Case Study of Oman's Dhofar Region

Authors:
Sangeeta Tripathi

Addresses:
1Department of Mass Communication, University of Technology and Applied Sciences, Salalah, Oman. sangeetakapil.234@gmail.com1 

Abstract:

The tourist business in Oman is thriving, thanks to the upturn in local activity; income at 3-to 5-star hotels in the Sultanate increased by 135%, while the number of guests increased by 79.1%. Because of this, the National Centre for Science Information reports that hotel occupancy in Oman surged by 39.1 percent in February 2022. In light of the new priorities for Oman's tourist industry, the post-pandemic surge in demand for domestic and local attractions, such as Khareef Salalah 2022, has taken centre stage. Community support to promote Oman tourism post-pandemic in the Dhofar region, which is the important tourist destination of Oman, has not been studied yet, despite numerous studies aimed at understanding the economic and social impacts of COVID-19 on Oman's tourism and its strategic recovery. So, it's crucial to figure out how the public gets involved and what they do on purpose in the country's tourism industry during a pandemic. The study also delves into the variables and communication's involvement in getting people to rally behind the country's post-pandemic tourism recovery efforts. In order to accomplish important goals and get to the bottom of the investigation, the qualitative research design was adopted. Participants included representatives from travel agencies, adventure trip operators, tour guides, performers, and guests of the Salalah and Dhofar hotels. The interviews were semi-structured. Community involvement and the desire to support rural tourism are two areas where this study's findings will add to the existing literature in the hospitality and tourist industries. 

Keywords: Community Supports and Measures; Oman’s Tourism Industry; Tourism Recovery Drive Post-Pandemic; Public Participation and Intentional Behaviour; Global Tourism Industry; Tourism and Hospitality Literature.

Received on: 28/06/2023, Revised on: 21/09/2023, Accepted on: 13/10/2023, Published on: 24/12/2023

FMDB Transactions on Sustainable Technoprise Letters, 2023 Vol. 1 No. 4, Pages: 195-203

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