Omani Cultural Tourism Surges as Fort and Castle Visitors Jump 26%
Tourists’ participation in Oman Sultanate’s historical sites witnessed a significant boost in 2025 owing to the rise in visitors to forts and castles managed by 26 percent compared to the previous year, according to data published by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI). Omani cultural tourism surge
The recently published Culture Statistics 2026-2025 Data report highlights that Oman’s historical sites hosted 849,146 visitors in the year, an average of 2,326 visitors per day. Out of thousands of historical buildings available in the region, 64 castles and forts are functional for tourism, constituting 12 percent of the total number of historical sites. The Nizwa Fort emerged as the leading cultural attraction within the category, attracting 35 percent of the total number of fort and castle visitors in the region.
In parallel, Oman expanded its institutional cultural infrastructure, bringing the total number of operational museums to 34, split between 12 public facilities and 22 private institutions. Despite this physical expansion, total museum attendance declined by 28 percent compared to the prior year, reaching 538,729 visitors, or an average of 1,476 per day. The flagship Oman Across Ages Museum retained its market dominance, accounting for 46 percent of all museum visits recorded across the country.
Public engagement across wider cultural activities demonstrated substantial growth. Attendance at 358 registered festivals, exhibitions, and public gatherings surged by 110 percent year-on-year, attracting more than 8.31 million attendees. To accommodate rising international and domestic tourism, Oman’s hospitality industry scaled up rapidly, expanding accommodation offerings—including hotels, furnished apartments, and guest facilities—from 1,031 establishments to 1,475 in 2025.
The NCSI bulletin also documented significant ongoing conservation efforts. Official restoration projects completed work on 441 historic landmarks out of 33,775 identified heritage sites and monuments nationwide. In addition, national document preservation teams completed digital scans of 54,043 historic manuscripts and physically restored 49,558 archival records during the year. Oman Economic Times
