Ready for OneWorld? Oman Air Flight Review - Riyadh to Muscat in Business Class

[@MonsieurWaffle]

It’s tiiiiime! Highlight of my week!

[@MattsPlanet]

I hope you enjoyed!

[@BarryOnCaroline]

Another excellent Matts Planet Video. Matt's analysis and depth of review is the very reason I stick around. Useful analysis not hype!

[@MattsPlanet]

Your comments are pretty solid too!!!! Thanks Barry

[@dionshani9915]

Absolutely love your videos and i would really like to see you succeed in what you are really so passionate about. Have you considered improving your thumbnails to bring in more traction?

[@MattsPlanet]

Of course I want my thumbnails to be as appealing as possible! I'm nervous of radical changes as they have a look and feel that I think makes them recognisable, but I dislike the more clickbait-y approach some people take and want to stay away from that....

[@dionshani9915]

@ much respect to that mate!

[@ukdavepianoman]

I've never flown Oman Air it seems. Looked decent enough. I've been to Saudi - it is changing quickly these days and it will be interesting to see how it continues. I love Manila (except the traffic!) so looking forward to the next video or two.

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks mate - Manila's traffic is still bonkers...

[@nickflintoff8077]

Nice work again Matt. I’ve still not flown Oman Air but I did pass through the airport in Muscat earlier this year and was impressed. I’m due to be in and out of Saudi through RUH in February - it looked pretty grim so at least now I’ll be mentally prepared for it. Forewarned is forearmed etc. etc.

[@MattsPlanet]

The airport is indeed at the grim end of the scale.... I've been told that this terminal is the last one to be refreshed so the others may be a little more attractive

[@macktravels68]

We went to Riyadh in June of this year and loved it. Amazing and friendly people!!

[@MattsPlanet]

Its not what you expect is it???

[@ss-xy2im]

Sunday again, great video again!

[@MattsPlanet]

I do my best!

[@Officerdee4059]

Matt, in relation to your entry questions into Oman, they like many other countries have an iborders system, where API is shared, assessed and checked on several occasions prior to your arrival. This will include personal and financial data. Depending on their information sharing protocols this can be a substantial amount of pre arrival data. Closed and open source information. Enough said but it does make our travel safer.

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks for that - makes a lot of sense.... Makes more sense than their system piecing it all together in 5 seconds!!!!

[@obdev9473]

Oman is my favourite country bar none. I kinda miss the old KKI experience. Somehow a little more 'authentic' than yet another cookie cutter glass shed. I remember when the KSA weekend was Thu/Fri, which was ideal as we only coincided with nosey western superiors 3 days a week. Fewer conf calls always a good thing. Have you thought of announcing your future travel plans so that we can make recommendations for new-to-you destinations ?

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks! I do talk about upcoming travel plans with my Patrons....

[@daveramm43]

Haven’t been on your channel for a while ( no particular reason😅)…. I forgot about the joy of watching a Mats Planet vlog on BBC a Sunday afternoon.

[@MattsPlanet]

Welcome back! We all make mistakes...

[@papi8659]

Love Oman,my favourite place in the middle east.Their newlcc carier Salamair is alo a pleaseure to fly.

[@MattsPlanet]

Oman is indeed beautiful and fun to visit... I need to spend longer than 12 hours there next time

[@khalidsaid6960]

@@MattsPlanet come with me.

[@jimmyjames6492]

❤OneWorld❤ Thanks for the info + video!

[@JJ-vy2rh]

Staralance if you're in the southern hemisphere

[@MattsPlanet]

Indeed - another good option

[@matthewgordon-banks7553]

Another great video. I tune in cos I a) like your vids & b) like to see the products. Your TP advice is great but mercifully Im a life-time card holder on OW, though its crucial for many followers. It reminds me of Sat sports results: Liverpool 1 Everton 2 but Liverpool win on aggregate! One thing did learn after a 25yr absence from Oman is a Brit no longer needs a visa??

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks for that - you have a distinctive name so a quick google reveals that your opinion is worth listening to!!! And yes - no visas required for a short tourism stay these days...

[@ian-pea]

Good video Matt, I’ve flown them a few times London - Muscat - London Business Class and alcohol was served 👍👍

[@MattsPlanet]

There was certainly alcohol on my onward flight to Manila - video along soon!

[@davenorth2903]

Nice video Matt. Oman air, actually, is one of my favorite ME airlines. I think you'll find their long haul Biz Class really good. In spite of the 2-2-2 setup, you'll still find aisle access from every seat. Great crews, good food, and a terrific lounge in Muscat. Tip for next time. If you're flying Biz class with an overnight transfer in Muscat, they'll put you up free at the Aerotel Hotel - a decent place that is airside - so you don't have to go through passport control. Can't wait until they join one world alliance - waited all of 2024 for this to happen - but at least it will in 2025. More status points.

[@MattsPlanet]

Cheers Dave - interesting that I didn't pick up on the free overnight option - I don't think they drew my attention to it... Didn't mind getting out of the airport but saving a few quid is always welcome! And the 2-2-2 seats are fantastic!

[@sidthekid4730]

Great entertaining video, 1st time viewer. Now, subscriber 😊. Well wishes from Langley, BC. Yout style is cool.

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks and welcome!

[@jackculpan]

Great seat! I experienced that with Cathay Pacific on a short hop to Taipei. Very comfy!

[@MattsPlanet]

Not sure how I'd enjoy 7 hours in it but it was lovely for this length of flight!

[@MattNav]

Nice job Matt ! I also loved Oman Air when I flew them a few years back from Muscat to Doha though in my case I was lucky to get to try their 787-9 business class on such a short route. Crews were friendly and I had a pleasant time onboard. Paid just 6,000 Etihad miles at the time in 2019 and it was definitely a good redemption for the money

[@MattsPlanet]

I flew on on the 787-8 to Manila, but got some time on the 787-9 too.... Bit cryptic but Oman air wasn't very "joined up" the day I flew!

[@hughjaars2285]

Bulgarian Airways Business Class short haul have a nice 2-2 configuration and a good level of service on the flight - I got re-routed on to them by BA on a TP run and had bit of job getting my TPs.

[@MattsPlanet]

I saw a review of Bulgarian Air recently and it looked good...

[@wv_]

I wouldn’t say that about the 737, it keeps having more and more complications over its layer cake of upgrades which depend on each other such as the recent United airlines incident where the pedals / steering became stuck on landing. Due to a system they didn’t even need and had disabled. Very lucky it didn’t happen on a windy day. Compare that to the Airbus whose systems have been simplified and more reliable over time. The next 777X however seems to be under intense scrutiny as was the A321 XLR by the FAA since the max debacle. All are relatively safe though. Am pilot.

[@mjrc123]

Completely agree with you. Not sure if that was a lazy throw-away comment or a genuine opinion. Either way I definitely don’t agree with Matt on this.

[@MattsPlanet]

I approach this sort of thing as a consumer rather than a technician so I'm very happy to take your comment on board.... All commercial aircraft are very safe these days!

[@charliebrown5]

Thank You ✈️

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks for watching

[@ozbolli]

2:33 those are more like just gate arms rather than terminals! My personal view with how KSA is driving their aviation industry to be “world leading” is a nice thought for them, but Emirates and Qatar have this market well and truly sown up. I think the only thing that could affect growth would be when Sir Tim Clark retires and EK drop the ball, but it’s highly unlikely. There’s also clearly a long way to go with streamlining their current aviation offerings, and tourism overall. I hear they’re finally about to complete on the new “world’s tallest building” finally? And the new tourist centred area is a concrete jungle without inhabitants.

[@MattsPlanet]

I have seen bigger gate arms, indeed! It will be fascinating to watch middle eastern aviation over the next decade.... And Riyadh isn't ready for tourists yet, but it will be soon....

[@ozbolli]

@@MattsPlanettotally agree. I’ve spent a lot of my adult life doing LHR-DXB and albeit I’ve had 2 which were beyond poor (one from BA and one from EK), most of the time I’ve been impressed. BA definitely don’t do it for me. Their 2017/8 head of Ops was a customer of mine and when I realised who he was, I spent the next hour talking to him about BA ops and their sinking since “the worlds best airline”. He upgraded my economy class ticket LHR-DXB and it was dreadful. I was about 33 at the time and was treated like I was a freeloader as my ticket had been upgraded. It got so bad, I showed them Mr Shah’s business card telling them he’d paid for my ticket…. And like *THAT* the serviced changed. This was about an hour out from Dubai so the situation was lost. Then on the return leg I had my phone stolen on the aircraft and they refused to call the police!

[@markwaite5265]

Thanks for this Matt ... an interesting if somewhat uninspiring video. Quite enlightening as well because WY are offering cheapish AU-UK J fares in combination with MH ex AU and the KUL-MCT leg on the 737Max. Looking forward to seeing the MCT-MNL leg and off to price in combination with a QF redemption. Given the way QF penalise "low cost rivals" such as MH or EK's competitors (horrible redemption rates on QR) is will be interesting to see what they do with WV when they join oneWorld.

[@MattsPlanet]

Indeed - no secret that the WY 787s have the Apex Suite which I rate very highly.... That video is being edited right now!

[@olly7673]

I enjoyed that Matt... again! I think your middle name on your passport of "De Pfeffe Tartiflettel" made it easy to identify you at Muscat from decades ago! How much, in terms of cost cutting would you say middle eastern airline who are dry have the advantage over non-dry ones?

[@MattsPlanet]

That's Boris Johnson's middle name I think!!!! I think being dry brings a negligible advantage. Most alcohol served is sourced duty free so would cost perhaps 20 - 30% of what we pay for a retail purchase, perhaps even less as airlines buy in huge bulk.... So even on a very boozy flight you're probably drinking less than £20 of alcohol

[@olly7673]

@@MattsPlanet"So even on a very boozy flight you're probably drinking less than £20 of alcohol" ..... you have yet to meet my wife!!!! 😂 AND.. I have seen from your vids how much profit you like to imbibe Matt!🥳

[@anthykapsalis5040]

Looking forward to the OneWorld joining - QR and BA are crazy expensive to Asia these days, so it will be great to have more choice.

[@MattsPlanet]

Choice is always good.... 6 months to wait... Qatar obviously consented to Oman joining the alliance so perhaps the pricing may not sharpen up....

[@smfjsy]

Look forward to the Riyadh video, it's ironic how ME offers better short haul business compared to Europe but the demand is relatively low.

[@MattsPlanet]

There's more demand than you might think in the region!

[@oblongmusic3389]

I often wonder what information other than our basic details are held on our passport chips .. there have been a few occasions when immigration read my data for minutes , rather than a few seconds.. I guess if you’ve done nothing wrong there’s no reason to worry huh ? I wish I was in Manila though .. maybe not over the Xmas and new year .. I mean due to the holiday price hikes .. obviously the Far East is much further away than the Middle East , but massively more interesting and enjoyable .. on that controversial note , thanks for another cool clip .. 🙏

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks! Another commenter said that countries sign up to a database and pre-screen arriving passengers against that extra information - which would explain it....

[@IWTBF]

9:14 that’s a proper short haul business class seat. Take not European carriers!!! This is what should be standard for those in that class.

[@MattsPlanet]

We can dream!

[@williamavery5322]

Shame you don't rate Riyadh airport and no doubt it is. probably past its sell by date. I recall visiting in the early 90s and being blown away by the architecture and fountains. I still think it is a beautiful set of terminals.

[@MattsPlanet]

I'm told that the terminal I used is the last to be refreshed so I'd expect the others to be better!

[@nav33d]

“I don’t need to obscure her appearance any further.” Steady on Matt, I don’t think it’s necessary to comment on her appearance at all. Other than that, great video once again.

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks!

[@woox007]

I found that to be well out of order also. I enjoyed the rest of your video.

[@Locutus]

Don't be a snowflake.

[@RobinMcguigan]

Quality video

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks!

[@rogerbird380]

Thanks, Matt. 👍🏻 Interesting to see Oman Air. I have been to Muscat but via Emirates - it's a great place and made a fascinating contrast to Dubai. When I was departing, the lady immigration officer checking my passport asked why I looked so miserable and I said it was because I was having to leave Oman. Which was partly true but not the whole story 😂

[@MattsPlanet]

It is indeed a great place. Good comeback to the passport agent!

[@da480]

May fly when they join OW and probably no flight segments over 4 hrs long so that not to be stuck in a seat like in your flight.

[@MattsPlanet]

Their long haul aircraft seats are quite good... Editing that video this afternoon....

[@alexalexsson210]

I find Oman an interesting country and will try to travel there in 2025. The costs from the EU are currently very high, especially for Business Class, particularly from Germany and France. Alternatively, I'm also looking at the route you did and flying via Saudi Arabia. Since Saudia is in SkyTeam and I have status there, that would also be a good alternative.

[@MattsPlanet]

If you can cope without booze then Saudi is a great option!

[@sharifur]

Hi Matt! I had a similar experience with UAE immigration officer asking me if I had multiple citizenships when I entered the country the first time on my UK passport (and all my previous visits were on a French passport). They worked out very quickly that I’m the same person who had used a different nationality passport on previous trips. Upon me enquiring if it was an issue (that I was now using a different country’s passport), he simply said that I should just use my French passport as it gives me 90 days visa free entry compared to my British one which gives me only 30 days! I did mention that I only ever visit for 4 days or so, and he said (with a smile) since I visit so frequently, I should just stay in their country for longer, and for that, the French passport trumps UK passport!

[@MattsPlanet]

Fascinating that he was giving immigration advice!!!

[@038kp]

Are you planning on doing the SAS 1 million point challenge? Would be good to hear your thoughts on it irrespective of whether you are or aren't doing the run!

[@MattsPlanet]

Sadly not - its quite an investment of time and money to cover 15 airlines and it wasn't one I could make.... A million points would be handy though.... Will be interesting to see how many people achieved it...

[@038kp]

@@MattsPlanet I do think it is quite brave for people to do it (a) believing they'll 100% get paid that 1million points; and (b) knowing if too many people do the challenge and SAS end up giving out millions of points, those points will be devalued very very quickly.

[@steve-marsh]

Haha you legend, thank you 🤣

[@MattsPlanet]

You're very welcome. I doubt you'll see an immediate spike in views, but every little helps eh???

[@AllTheStationsUK]

Hi Matt, quick question what’s the rules around using a travel companies branding in your video or in like the thumbnail?

[@MattsPlanet]

Excellent question that I've actually been thinking about lately.... I've never had any pushback but I can see brand owners not being happy.... And the big creators often use branding and presumably haven't had any issues... Strictly I probably shouldn't (and I have all of my thumbnails readily editable if I do get a complaint) Hopefully the airlines think all publicity is good publicity...

[@tonyracks2956]

airport seemed a bit of a mish mash but the flight seemed ok and as for the dual passport episode i would have been very nervous ...but as a very well travelled man you seemed to have handled it will another great video matt ...stay in good health

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks - Riyadh airport isn't the best! And I did breathe heavily for a moment or two at the border. Not having a drink for 4 days probably helped!

[@tonyracks2956]

@@MattsPlanet but i bet you have made up for it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@dospalmascb]

Germany also do not allow dual citizenship, doubt it includes visitors as so many Israelis have multiple citizenship and many visit Germany. great video Matt. Thanks for sharing.

[@MattsPlanet]

Interesting - German and nothing else eh?

[@ccm4455]

No e gates in Saudi Arabia same stamp 😢

[@MattsPlanet]

Indeed

[@timtony7153]

Hi Matt, Thanks for your excellent video! O dear, Oman Air, what have you done? I took 12 sectors with them, documenting all food and beverage.... This looks nothing like the food I received, even last quarter . They are in survival mode..... Stay well Thomas

[@MattsPlanet]

I continued to Manila (video in a week or three) and the service was good but not outstanding....

[@passenger77-UK]

Be an interesting add for OW and offers a little more clout in the Middle East, although, there’s already Qatar for that? Great video as ever. 👍🏻

[@MattsPlanet]

Thanks - Qatar is obviously happy for Oman to join the club as they would have had to sign off on membership...

[@passenger77-UK]

@@MattsPlanet- quite! They’ll be method in their agreeance, I’m sure.

[@Jimmyjamesgannon]

You didn't stick around!

[@MattsPlanet]

Briefly!

[@tonyracks2956]

@@MattsPlanet lololoololol

[@twentyrothmans7308]

Like many, I'm swearing off just after 1/1 to Australia Day. This would be one extreme way of doing it.

[@MattsPlanet]

Dry January doesn't work for me as its my birthday on the 8th.... I used to do 30 dry days in January and February but even that's fallen by the wayside lately... Good luck with your fast!

[@twentyrothmans7308]

@@MattsPlanet She's right - just finishing up work assignment, and it's incentive to obtain my next - nothing to do with health. The Devil finds work, etc. I also took onboard your one passport policy. Looking forward to your next update - have only transited through MNL.

[@andrewstorm8240]

Matts lounge

[@MattsPlanet]

Interesting idea!

[@arshixoxo]

8:24 unnecessary comment imo

[@MattsPlanet]

A few people have said that....

[@aminonmiles8054]

Oman Air will keep delaying joining oneworld. Still lots of in-house cleaning to be done.

[@MattsPlanet]

I think it will be difficult to delay now they've announced a date, but there is more work to do for sure

[@slavchick2602]

Nice shout out to Steve - enjoy you both!

[@MattsPlanet]

I had the chance to meet him recently and he is as lovely in real life!!!