After breakfast at the hotel, it’s time to get to know Muscat. Boasting a diverse range of sights and places, Muscat offers a unique opportunity to witness a modern commercial centre existing in harmony with traditional culture. Begin your half-day tour with a visit to the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque, built of Indian sandstone and boasting one of the world’s largest handmade Persian rugs. This splendid structure is the second-largest mosque in the world, with a gigantic chandelier hung high over the men’s prayer hall. It’s a triumph of Islamic design that must be seen to be believed.
Afterwards, enjoy a tour of the Royal Opera House Muscat, a stunning white-brick building and a perfect example of contemporary Omani architecture. Continue along the waterfront Mutrah Corniche to the busy fishing harbour, with its quaint wooden dhows and fishing boats, before stopping at the local bazaar (souq) to browse the stalls and perhaps try your hand at haggling. Visit the Corniche’s fish market before enjoying lunch at local restaurant Bait al Luban, the perfect place to try the city’s renowned seafood.
Return to the hotel for an afternoon of leisure.
Sheraton Oman Hotel stay
Mutrah Souq visit
Your adventure starts early this morning as you board a 4WD vehicle and depart for Wahiba Sands. Drive through spectacular, rugged landscapes, with glimpses of the blue waters of the Gulf of Oman offset by pristine white beaches, towards the fishing village of Quriyat. It’s a land of flamingos and eagles – if you’re lucky, you might spot one of the birds along the way – and titanic craters, such as the limestone Bimah sinkhole you’ll stop by shortly after.
Arriving at the small village of Sur, visit a traditional dhow factory before ascending mountain terrain towards the spectacular Wahiba Sands. Be sure to charge your camera in advance – the hypnotic patterns of the dunes are a photographer’s delight. This evening, savour the ever-changing colours of the desert at sunset before a delicious dinner.
Home to the Bedouin people and stunning pale-gold dunes that seem to stretch out endlessly, Wahiba Sands covers 12,000 square kilometres of mostly uninhabited desert. After breakfast, visit a local Bedouin family for insight as to how the tribe’s centuries-old traditions and culture are kept alive today. Afterwards, venture onwards to Wadi Bani Khalid, a small collection of communities surrounding one of the desert’s most spectacular, turquoise waterholes. Finish at Jebel Akhdar, a dramatic mountain range brimming with fantastic sights.
Check-in to your five-star accommodation, Alila Jabal Akhdar – a stone-clad retreat suspended high above the rocky wadis and terraced orchards of Oman’s Green Mountain. The architecture draws from ancient fortresses, with heavy wooden doors, cooling stone walls and lantern-lit pathways. Inside, carved Omani motifs meet contemporary earth tones, while every room opens onto a private balcony or terrace that drinks in the silence of the Al Hajar range.
Enjoy an evening of indulgence and dinner at the hotel.
Wadi Bani Khalid visit
Today is all about exploring the natural beauty of Jebel Akhdar, encompassing 2,000 square metres of labyrinthine wadis and terraces. First, head to the idyllic traditional villages of Al Aqir and Al Ain, where you will learn about historic high-elevation agricultural practices. Then, be led through the elaborately manicured terraces, shaped by the Bani Riyam tribe who cultivated the area. Today it thrives with lush rose bushes, pomegranate plantations and olive trees, as well as the ‘Falaj’ – an intricate water system originally stemming from the mountain springs themselves.
Enjoy a picnic lunch before taking in the afternoon at leisure, making the most of the lavish facilities at your five-star stay. Sink into the infinity pool, retreat to Spa Alila where wild rose and pomegranate infuse every treatment or follow a guide through hidden mountain trails and villages – how you spend your afternoon is entirely up to you.
Following breakfast, you will make your way back to Muscat via the ancient city of Nizwa. Take a guided tour of the historic Nizwa Fort and souq, where stalls offer fabric, dresses, jewellery, pottery, ceremonial knives and more, before dropping by the adjacent Friday Cattle Market, where vendors have traded livestock for centuries. Proceed to the village of Misfat al Arbayeen, an authentic Omani mud village built directly into the mountainside, sitting atop towering boulders. Pass by the ruins of an old fort and explore the city’s shaded terraces, palm gardens and old alleyways before enjoying a traditional lunch in nearby village Al Hamra, located at the foot of the Hajar Mountains.
Arriving at Muscat in the late afternoon, you’ll sit down for a memorable farewell dinner this evening.
Sheraton Oman Hotel stay
Your trip comes to an end today after breakfast, with a transfer to Muscat International Airport (MCT) and your onward journey.