MUSCAT: Guests staying in 3- to 5-star hotels in the Sultanate of Oman jumped 43 per cent to around 1.219 million last year, up from 850K a year earlier, according to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

Revenues generated by 3- to 5-star hotels also grew 19.2 per cent to RO 101.668 million, compared to RO 85.292 million by the same period in 2020.

Hotels occupancy rates went up by 44.9 per cent from 26.5 per cent by the end of December, 2020, to 38.3 per cent by the end of December, 2021.

Arab countries contributed 47,644 guests, their numbers growing 97.3 per cent from the previous year’s tally of 24,154 guests. Guests from Asian guests totalled climbed 93.5 per cent to reach 141,136 in 2021, up from 72,930 in 2020. European visitors declined by 40.3 per cent to 105,558 guests last year, down from 176,820 in 2020.

Among the nationalities, Omani guests accounted for the largest share at 814,518 last year, up 67 per cent from the previous year’s total of 487,804 in 2020.

(With inputs from ONA)