New City Salalah masterplan to boost...

Coastal city is renowned for seasonal waterfalls

A masterplan to transform Salalah and boost tourism has been announced for the coastal city in the south of Oman.

Well known regionally for the annual khareef monsoon season, which transforms the surrounding Dhofar region into a green oasis with cascading waterfalls, it's also popular as a winter destination for European tourists and boasts a number of historical sites.

More than a million tourists visited Salalah during the three-month khareef in 2024, to see the transformation of the usually arid landscape and also enjoy temperatures that can be 20 degrees cooler than other cities on the Arabian peninsula.

Salalah has long stretches of virtually empty sandy beaches, but that could change with this plan to turn the destination into a year-round sea and sun hotspot.

The New City Salalah masterplan, designed by design studio Sasaki Associates, will cover 7.3 square kilometres, have 12,000 residential units, abundant parks and open spaces and 200,000 square metres of retail and hospitality space around a pedestrianised marina. There will also be a new 6km public beach.

Part of the sultanate’s US$85.4 billion being invested as part of the Oman Vision 2040 plan, work on the New City Salalah waterfront development will begin this year.

Romil Sheth, principal designer at Sasaki Associates, said Salalah is blessed with incredible natural features and a deep history, while the landscape includes lush wadis and sandy beaches.

After a 20% increase in passenger numbers, reaching 3.2 million in 2024, Oman-based low-cost carrier SalamAir said in February 2025 it will add 10 aircraft to its fleet to meet demand, including added connectivity to Salalah.

Oman aims to build its tourism industry over the next 16 years to attract 11.7 million visitors annually, more than double current numbers, with 6 million tourists expected by 2030.

Oman is also developing its cruise offering, signing an agreement with Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Bahrain to promote the sector across all four destinations, and recently signed the Hafeet Rail project agreement linking Sohar with Abu Dhabi.

Explora Journeys has unveiled its inaugural Red Sea and Arabian Peninsula itinerary, with the first departure scheduled for December 2026, with visits to Salalah included.

Added connectivity by low-cost carrier SalamAir to Salalah from Baghdad and Bahrain has been particularly popular with travellers keen to experience the khareef season.

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