Oman Travel Guide

Muttrah Souq, the oldest marketplace in Muscat, is a place to visit for shopping. The covered bazaar consists of many shops and stalls selling souvenirs, clothes, silverwear and goldwear, spices, etc. Just like any other tourist spot, bargain is a must. In the heat of Muscat, it is nice to hide in the shade and look at the shops. The shop owners...

The bus from Oman National Bus Company is leaving Dubai from Al Rigga road at 7 am, you can buy the ticket in the office in advance, or if not allready full, someone will sell tickets next to the bus. It takes 6 hours arriving in Muscat a few minutes after the money changer closed his shop for a long lunch break. It is 55 VAE Dirham. At the border...

Center to the city lies the Sultan Qaboos Mosque named after the king of Oman.You cannot miss it as it is central to the city of Shalalah.An imposing and beautiful structurein front of abusy and bustling commercial area.

This wadi is about 20 kms from Shalalah city centre.A nice waterbody with boating facilities.There are a couple of refreshments joint around.

The area has abundant supply of tropical fish a few unique to the Persian gulf. There are limited reefs in the area but the boat stops in a couple of areas with decent snorkeling. I didn't have an underwater camera with me so snapped these from above.

Musendam is famous for its humpback dolphins that like nothing better than a chance to play in the dhow boats wake. Once they catch a ride they will follow the boat surfing the wake for 15 to 20 minutes until they exhaust themselves.

Indian, Chinese and Continental dishes are on the menu at Spicy Village in Nizwa. It is part of a small chain of restaurants with branches in Ruwi, Rusayl, Sohar, and Al-Khuwair.The Nizwa restaurant was very basic but very clean, with speedy service and full of happy customers, many of which work for various construction companies in the area. It...

If you have a good driver or the money to hire an actual guide/tour you will probably see this place. Sorry I lost my notes but if I recall correctly it was about a45 min to an hour from Nizwa. If you happen to know the name of the place shoot me a note and I will update it.Thx

Every evening hundreds of young soccer fans are playing on the beach just before sunset.Al Ayjah tower onthe other side of the bay.

All doors in old Sur are really pieces of art.It is sometimes reflecting the origin of the family

During the journey along the rugged coastal gravel road to Tiwi, you will come across this structure in the photograph which is actually an old tomb of the local people. Apparently, there used to be many of these tombs around here, but many are demolished to make way for the new talmac road which will replace the gravel road soon. The view of the...

The entrance to the rugged coastal road from Muscat to Sur where Tiwi, Qalhat etc are located is somewhere after the town of Qurayyat which is south of Muscat. From the main talmac road, this gravel road is rather discrete and the initial part goes along a dry wadi between two hills. After that, the gravel road goes up and down through several...

There are many stunning views of the rugged Eastern Hajar Mountains during the journey from Muscat to Tiwi. This mountain range dominates the coastal area south of Muscat all the way to the Wahiba Sands desert.

Ibra is one of the least visited cities in Oman so it doesnt attract huge tourist groups that Nizwa or Muscat gets. The only real tourists are the ones that pass through on their way to Sur or to the Wahiba Sand Dunes. The only chance of being ripped off would be in the Wednesday souq but even then the locals will not take advantage like people in...

Old Ibra as the locals call it is a place where time travel is possible. The village of Minzfah has the appearance of a village that has been abandoned after a great storm. Palm tree leaves cover the paths and roads while dust and dirt give way to small green gardens owned by some of the few Bedouin people that still live here. The locals are super...

One of the biggest reasons why Ibra doesnt see more travellers because independant backpackers are unheard of and are extremely rare because travellers are unaware of the transportation scene. Travelling Oman alone is a challenge and half and I reckon it is the most difficult place to travel around in the Middle East (more difficult than Yemen or...

Al-Hotta Cave in brief Al Hotta cave is located at the foot of Jabal Shams, in the vicinity of the Tanuf Valley in Al Hamra district. It is more than 5km long traversed by underground River. The Omani Ministry of Tourism have undertaken an initiative to make the lower part of the cave an environmentally sound tourist attraction. A socio-economic...

Entrance is free. Opening hours are daylight. There is no guard, no official notices or placards.When you arrive at this pedestrian-only town, park just on the outside and walk in. Follow the beaten path into the old corridors. Do not wonder into any homes unless you have permission. Do now walk in any of the terraced fields. Do not pick or eat any...

Al Hamra and more specifically Misfat Al Abriyyin are conservative Muslim towns. The people are wonderfully polite and courteous, so it would be respectful to pay them the same courtesy!The people in the area dress with typical robes and headdresses. While it is not expected that you do the same, it is respectable to cover your upper arms. Also, if...

One of the most impressive forts in Oman, Jabrin Fort has some impressive carvings on its balconies and ceilings and is situated overlooking desert plains.

Jabrin Fort is so huge that you need to move quite far away to be able to capture the entire fort in the photograph. The huge car park in front of the fort is a good place to try to take this photograph.

The jail room at Jabrin Fort is interesting with its dangling handcuffs. I managed to have this interesting photograph taken, but mindful that this was once a place where the prisoners had suffered during their imprisonment.

This is the big mosque of town and it is a pity that we had just passed by it on our way to the fishmarket instead of getting out of the bus and exploring the interior as well. Unfortunately there are also some street-constructions going on in that area.

The market for vegetables is seperated from the fishmarket, but next to it and the first funny or rather an interesting detail was for me the fact, that fresh sardines were sold on the fishmarket, but the dried sardines are sold on the vegetable-market ( see my 3rd photo ! ). Such markets are a good place to buy Dates and we have learned that dates...

Fishing in the sea of Oman is only allowed for local Omanis and not for anybody else. This was ruled by the Sultan already decades ago and that was a clever decicion that gave work and income to many local people. And so the fishmarket is also under local control and interesting to see for tourists coming to Oman.Fishing is done by tiny boats, the...

While the source of the spring has been enclosed solely for viewing, the shaded rest area complete with playground makes for a welcome break.

Rustaq fort was built four centuries prior to the dawn of Islam (6 B.C.) in Oman.It is a building constructed of special selected stones fixed together by mortar and mud - bricks. It is built on three levels, containing separate houses, an armoury, a mosque, several wells, Bayadha mosque, and the tomb of late Imam/Sultan bin Seif (Qaidh Al Ardh)....

I had a great respect for my students, and wish I had had more time to really get to know them better. Unfortunately when I left Oman, I failed to make notes of full anmes and addresses. So, wherever you travel, take a notebook and pencil with you, or you'll regret it.BTW, I'm on the left,but I still can't get over how brown I was - just like a...

like what i've said, when you booked a desert safari tour from dubai, the direct route going to hatta which is about an hour drive from downtown dubai via Highway E 44 will cross into the Al Buraymi District of Oman and the highway becomes Highway 5 for a few kilometers and you will be inside oman without a visa! albeit there is nothing to see but...

This is a real shame. I was able to walk here – into Oman – for free from Al Ain in the UAE. I though that was really cool. There used to be no border here. There is now! So if you want to run between the borders like I did you will probably have to pay a fee of about $20 coming into Oman. Doing the reverse and going into the UAE may be free. If...

Staying in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and being close to the Sultanate of Oman me and my travel company decided to go to the dessert city of Al Ain, UAE and cross the border to Oman. Normally when entering Oman you will have to apply for a visa but according to our guide it was possible to enter Oman with a visa if only visiting the city of Al...

If you are going to try and invade a fort, be careful. There is an ancient tradition of pouring boiling hot date syrup through vents above doorways onto intruders.You have been warned!

Al fresco dining with food handpicked as you watch, even choose your own tree khalas dates and gawa (Arabic coffee)

When you go to visit Al Hazm fort, see if you can spot the elusive climbing baba.He very kindly offered to climb up one of palm trees beside Al Hazm fort and get us some ymmy khalas dates to eat!They were damn fine!

Bayt al-Sidduf is one of three remaining traditional, fortified, merchants' houses in the centre of Mirbat. It is a crumbling ruin and in danger of total collapse.

Mirbat Castle was originally built in the 19th century. In July 1972 it was defended by Omani Army and British SAS soldiers against several hundred communist insurgents in the Battle of Mirbat.

Just outside Mirbat, on the road to Salalah, is the tomb of Mohammed bin Ali Al-Alawi, a descendant of the son-in-law of the Prophet Mohammed, who set up a madrassa (religious school) in Mirbat and died here in 1161. His twin onion-domed mausoleum stands in the middle of a large Islamic cemetery. The stone sarcophagus inside the airconditioned...