khabah

So the new rules are announced... and as I sneakily suspected, they're not great:

• From the evening of Saturday, August 21st, 2021, the night curfew will be eliminated and movement can be 24 hours again.
• Starting from September 1st, everyone entering Oman via land, air and sea must have completed both doses of a vaccine regimen approved by Oman, which includes one of the following:
  • Pfizer
  • AstraZeneca
  • Sputnik
  • Sinopharm
  • If you've taken Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, Sinovac or anything else, you're SOL. There are low-key rumors of adding J&J to the approved list but until it happens, only the four vaccines mentioned above are approved.
• All arrivals must have a negative PCR test pre-arrival or submit to one on arrival.
• Everyone arriving must quarantine for seven days, with another PCR test to be taken on the eighth day.
  • There's some confusion about the wording of the announcement, which says that quarantine is necessary for those testing positive but is less clear about negative arrivals, but pending further clarification, quarantine is required for everyone in addition to vaccination.
• As mentioned earlier, Omani citizens can quarantine at home, while all non-Omanis must quarantine in hotels at their own expense. Exceptions to this rule are those over 60 or with an approved medical condition, but if that's the case, you must complete seven days of quarantine at home. The quarantine rule sticks.
• Starting September 1st, vaccination is a prerequisite to enter all government facilities and private establishments like malls and restaurants, as well as to attend events like sports games, cultural happenings and festivals, and it is up to the respective authorities of those places to ensure that visitors are vaccinated.
• Despite what is mentioned above, there is no explicit mention of whether or not tourists are allowed to enter yet.

As expected, there is no formal app, passport or mechanism to get your vaccination status approved or carry it around. We don't know how it'll work for people vaccinated outside of Oman - i.e. for those of us with white CDC cards, do we have to flash those to hotels and mall guards? Totally unknown.

To everyone who is considering a trip here this year: my advice to you is to FORGET OMAN AND PLAN TO GO ELSEWHERE. Things here are disorganized, information is garbled and slow to come out, and the foundations of the new tourism industry are not in place. Perhaps they will be in a few months, but I would safely assume that the tourist and holiday season this year is out the window.

khabah

SanDiego1K

khabah, thank you for keeping it real for us. I'm perplexed that Oman doesn't recognize the Moderna vaccine but I guess it doesn't matter for me since there will be no tourism in 2021.

currid7

Very disappointed, we have a fantastic itinerary all booked! The flights were booked with ANA Mileage Club and the alternative trip we're looking at uses other miles, so I guess I can keep both booked at least for now in case something crazy happens.

sophialite

So let's get this straight... you still have to quarantine even if you're vaccinated with an approved vaccine?

sophialite

Seems like according to this you don't have to quarantine if you're vaccinated and test negative:

https://timesofoman.com/article/1056...-entry-to-oman


See also this: https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1105614/oman/transport/7-day-quarantine-for-only-those-infected-with-covid

khabah

That’s why I referenced the confusion regarding the wording - the English release was jumbled and the Arabic one was clearer, but the initial press that came out after said that everyone quarantines despite the Arabic release implying that quarantine is only for positive cases.

SO NEEDLESSLY CONFUSING. They keep setting themselves up for waves of phone calls and torrents of visitors to the ministry seeking clarifications when all they need to do is issue one clear notification, but alas…

khabah

sophialite

Thanks Khabah. It's indeed very confusing.

I'm headed to that part of the world in November, so will likely look to pass through Oman :-)

khabah

Ladies and gentlemen, we have some updates. The below is copy-pasted from a just-released article from the Oman Observer [I've rearranged some of the points for greater flow]:

• The list of countries from which arrivals are prohibited from entering the territory of the Sultanate has been terminated. This list included the following countries:
  • Republic of Sudan
  • Federal Republic of Brazil
  • Federal Republic of Nigeria
  • Federal Republic of Tanzania
  • Republic of Sierra Leone
  • Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
  • Republic of India
  • United Kingdom
  • Islamic Republic of Pakistan
  • People's Republic of Bangladesh
  • Republic of Philippines
  • Kingdom of Thailand
  • Malaysia
  • Socialist Republic of Vietnam
  • Republic of Indonesia
  • Republic of Iraq
  • Islamic Republic of Iran
  • Republic of Tunisia
  • State of Libya
  • Republic of Argentina
  • Republic of Colombia
• All Omani citizens, residents of Oman, visa holders of Oman, those who do not require a visa to travel to Oman, and those who can obtain a visa upon arrival are allowed to enter the Sultanate in accordance with the pre-COVID system.
• All passengers arriving at the Sultanate are required to present a COVID-19 vaccine certificate containing a QR Code stating that they have received two doses of a vaccine approved in Oman, or in cases where a single dose is approved by the Health Authorities of the Sultanate, have received one dose of such vaccine.
  • The last dose is required to have been received not less than fourteen (14) days ahead of the estimated arrival time.
  • The Ministry of Health will publish and updates the list of vaccines approved in Oman.
• All passengers arriving in the Sultanate that present a pre-travel negative result COVID-19 PCR test are exempted from quarantine, The COVID-19 PCR test shall indicate the medical test result which can be validated and certified with a QR Code and the test shall be conducted within ninety-six (96) hours prior to the scheduled time of arrival in the Sultanate for the international flights of more than eight (8) hours duration, including transit, and seventy-two (72) hours for shorter flights,
• All passengers arriving in the Sultanate without holding a negative COVID-19 PCR test in accordance with paragraph number (4) of this circular are subject to a COVID-19 PCR test upon arrival where after the traveler shall be required to enter mandatory quarantine with an electronic tracking bracelet until a negative PCR test results are received.
• However, in cases of a positive PCR test result, the passenger shall be required to undergo mandatory health isolation for ten (10) days starting from the test date. Except that passengers who have recovered from COVID-19 but tested positive on arrival are exempted from health isolation providing they are able to submit proof that they have completed the prescribed isolation period in the country where they were infected before traveling to the Sultanate.

There you have it. There isn't an explicit mention of tourists allowed back in, but it's certainly implied in the part I bolded and underlined above.

I called the Ministry of Health and vaccination-related authorities yesterday to inquire about their approved vaccine list, and the Ministry told me that Moderna was approved last week and Johnson & Johnson is pending. In true 'the left hand doesn't know what the right hand' is doing fashion, the vaccination authorities said their system shows nothing about Moderna or J&J. On top of that, a friend of mine told me today that after stopping by a government clinic, the nurse told her that J&J was approved by the Ministry but has yet to be added to the list of approved vaccines.

This is an overall positive development, and I would expect the updated vaccine list to be issued before September 1st in order to assuage travelers looking to come to the country. If anyone is looking into a trip here, I would recommend calling your local Omani embassy just to be sure that everything is a go from September 1st, and get some [refundable and cancellable] travel on the books!

If any of you make it out here, let me know and let's link up.

khabah

khabah

Update: just got this screenshot from a friend, who got it from a doctor friend with access to Oman's medical registration system. The drop-down list is the input for vaccinations, and when I arrived in Oman in June, I saw that it consisted only of the four approved vaccines of Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Sputnik and Sinopharm. Building on the info I shared above, it seems that Moderna, J&J and Sinovac are now added, which by extension means that they will be considered approved for incoming arrivals.

I'm going to one of the government clinics tomorrow to see if this has any truth to it and to input my J&J details if it turns out to be. If I see Moderna on there as well, then those who took Moderna will also be considered a go for travel to the country.

Will keep you all posted!

khabah

SanDiego1K

Thank you for being our person on the ground, @khabah. Thank you for searching out up to date information for us. Your information is invaluable.

currid7

+1 to that, this information is greatly appreciated! Really hopeful we can make our Christmas trip happen! Thank you for all the updates

GUWonder

Is Oman also going to be requiring and checking for proof of a valid health insurance policy to cover tourist visits in Oman? Pre-pandemic, I don't recall that ever being checked for flying to Oman as a short-term visitor.

khabah

I've repeatedly seen that health insurance will be mandatory for incoming arrivals in this day and age, but I've never had it checked as a resident. Not sure how it'll work for tourists, but the Supreme Committee is having a press conference tomorrow to issue clarifications regarding travel to Oman. From an announcement last week, a trickle this week and an announcement of an announcement a few days ago, they're really milking their being in control... ugh.

As always, I'll share whatever details are revealed here. Almost there!

khabah

khabah

Latest info as per my experiences and today's Supreme Committee press conference:

• As a resident, I got my J&J vaccine details uploaded into the local system, and can confirm that J&J and Moderna are now on the approved vaccines list.
• As of today, August 26th, 2021, the Ministry of Health and the Supreme Committee has issued the following list of approved vaccines:
  • Pfizer-BioNTech
  • Oxford-AstraZeneca
  • AstraZeneca – Covishield
  • Johnson & Johnson
  • Sinovac
  • Moderna
  • Sputnik V
  • Sinopharm
• The land borders are reopening on September 1st. Tourists can arrive from noon [Muscat time] on September 1st.
• Arriving tourists must be fully vaccinated. This includes non-citizens and non-residents who don't need a visa, can get one via an embassy or can get one on arrival. If you took a single-dose vaccine, you can enter the country 14 days after you have taken your dose. If you are on a two-dose regimen, you can only enter Oman 14 days after you have taken your second dose. In addition to the above:
  • You must download and pre-register on Oman's COVID app, Tarassud+, and upload your vaccination certificate and PCR test [if you did one before departure] with QR codes on both visible.
  • People who get a PCR test on arrival will get their results via Tarassud+.
• The only group of unvaccinated people who can travel to Oman are Omani citizens, so long as they adhere to the rules that are in place, while travelers below 18 and passengers with medically-confirmed health conditions that prevent them from taking vaccines are exempt from presenting a vaccine certificate and PCR test. What qualifies as a medical exemption is something I don't know, but bring all your documentation and have a lot of patience for the experience.
• PCR tests are the only recognized form of COVID testing in Oman. No antigen testing is permitted or recognized, and your PCR test must have a QR code on it for verification by the local authorities.
  • If you are arriving in Oman after a flight/journey of eight+ hours, your PCR must not be older than 96 hours.
  • If you are arriving in Oman after a flight/journey of less than eight hours, your PCR must not be older than 72 hours.
  • If you are arriving in Oman without a PCR test, you must pre-register and pre-pay for one on arrival at the airport via the hMushrif app, wear an electronic bracelet and quarantine until a result is available.
  • In all cases, travelers with negative PCR tests are exempt from quarantine. If you are awaiting your result following a test on arrival and test negative, you can end your isolation and return the bracelet.
  • Quarantine is only required for travelers who test positive, in which case they must isolate for seven days with the electronic bracelet given to them at the airport.
  • If you are entering Oman through the land borders, your PCR test must be done before arrival as there are no facilities to test at the border posts.
• Oman is "studying ways" to waive PCR testing for fully-vaccinated travelers moving between GCC countries, but nothing has been announced yet.

Start booking your trips, all you vaccinated masses!

khabah

sophialite

Yayyy!

so which hotel should I stay at in Muscat?