Middle Eastern is fast becoming a popular tourist resort

According to Lonely Planet, destinations in the Middle East are becoming increasingly popular with western holidaymakers.

Recently, Muscat, the capital city of Oman, was voted second on the travel adviser's list of must see cities in 2012 and contributor Tom Hall believes the region will see a tourist boom shortly.

"Muscat has a huge amount of history, a lot of heritage with the port, which has been a world trading post for centuries. It is somewhere that is growing - it has resorts opening and an opera house, but it manages to mix all of that with an authenticity that you don't always find in the Arabian peninsula." he stated

However, he was keen to point out that the tourism trade in much of the Middle East depends on political situations and how people perceive them.

Qatar is expected to see a jump in its tourist figures in the run up to the 2022 football World Cup.

Posted by Jamie Manterfield