Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Oman Air

Ynotoman ("Why not Oman", gettit?) is flying from London Gatwick to Muscat, Oman today, and reports on the tasty on-board food (lamb, tamarind sorbet).

Gatwick sounds like a better option for Oman than my usual choice, Heathrow. The BA flight from Heathrow to Muscat departs at 9:40am, which makes for a tight connection if you're arriving into Heathrow from somewhere else that morning, as I usually am.

Oman Air recently rebranded their planes (more rounded imagery, more green) and revamped their fleet. This coincides with Oman's rise as a tourist destination.

I've posted my own tourist tips for Muscat, Oman here:

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mark - Oman Air’s direct flight brought me back to Gatwick after 20 years. The ‘Gatwick Express’ from Victoria was a treat – practically into Terminal 2 . Compared to Heathrow, Gatwick’s shops were disappointing – I desperately wanted gifts and am going to see friends in Oman looking very shame faced. I think the lack of gifts is because Gatwick is really a ‘short haul’ budget holiday maker's airport . Oman Air was on its toes and paged me as they were all boarded and ready to go – 20 minutes early !! All in all a very nice experience . I gather Oman Air is actively looking for a slot at Heathrow – after all Emirates started out into Gatwick . Heathrow makes sense if Oman Air achieves a brand recognition that will enable it to collect passengers from the States and UK and fly them via Oman into the other GCC States and onwards to India where it has very good connections and Thailand etc. Gatwick however will see more of me irrespective of an option of Heathrow.

Linda Summerfield said...

Thank you for the info on the market, it looks lovely and far nicer than our local flea market.
Linda

Mark O'Neill said...

Ynotoman:

Yes, I never understand how newspapers often complain about Heathrow being like a giant shopping mall. To me, that is one of the attractions of Heathrow. Gatwick is quite bare by comparison.

Linda:

No problem, maybe your article covered in the Oman Tribune will spread shabby chic to Oman. I have often read that newspaper, it is one of the "under the door" papers typically given for free to hotel guests there, like USA Today in the US.