Friday, May 25, 2007

this is for the foreignors out there

A lot of tourists or foreigners in Oman have widely begun to feel displeased at the price rates in some, if not most, of the high class restaurants, cafe's, coffeeshops and other five star category establishments. Their displeasure is targeted at how the price rates in Oman vary from window-shop price to the time that they actually buy the product in name.

This is mostly due to the fact that Ministry of Tourism along with Muscat Municipality requests such establishments to add an extra tax for allowing them to operate in the Sultanate of Oman. Such as the 5& municipal tax, and the other 5 or 10% (I'm not sure about the figures, so if you know them, please correct me) tourism tax and in some other establishments such as Pizza Hut where you also pay an extra 8% service tax of the establishment. In all cases, such taxes are waived to a minimum if you happen to order the product as a take-away or delivery.

Such establishments and organizations get blasted because they are not informed of the policy when it is right there in front of them above with the hanged menus where you choose what you want to buy. Others deny to take out an extra 200 or a merely 50 baizas to just finish up the tax-included-price, and end up making such a fuss that this goes against the policy of having to encourage tourism.

Which, to them, I would like to address the following; you all live in different countries where a dozen taxes are asked of you and no you have no problem to pay to them your debt so why should it make any difference to you if you end up paying a small amount of money that you would scarcely miss in a day or two if it does end up in the hands of people who would invest it into a development project here in Oman of which could mean that you would also benefit and contribute to a greater good?

It has been once said that in order for tourism to become a force that a country can rely on, it must have the entire support and focus of all the industries in one country put together.

2 comments:

Twister said...

Tax is 9% in total, 5% tourism levy and 4% municipal levy, in addition to any service charges.

Sleepless In Muscat said...

Twister:

Thank you for that insight.

:o)