Oman is the Arabia of your imagination, with rippling deserts, roadside camel trains and ingeniously built forts all gift-wrapped in wadis, canyons and frontier mountains riddled with stories. It is a last frontier in another sense too: tourism is still in its infancy here and, on this self-drive circuit, you’ll often find yourself blissfully alone, yet still on the road to somewhere unforgettable and rarely visited. It’s also safe, easy to navigate, and with a good standard of roads – so buckle up for a bucket-list adventure.
The character of Oman’s capital, Muscat, is grounded by sights such as the minarets, arches and onion dome of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque – it stirs the soul as you approach and is a sublime, if solemn introduction to the respectful Omani way of life. In the main prayer hall, you walk over a football pitch-sized Persian carpet, through courtyards revealing fascinating displays of faith. Nearby, a building with an equal dollop of pomp is the Royal Opera House, with its Islamic-Italianate frills and theatrical thrills. Time your trip to coincide with a marquee premiere, a ballet, or classic opera.
Place to stay: One of the Gulf’s loveliest hotels, The Chedi envelops you in luxury from the get-go. Come for its three swimming spools, stay for the Balinese spa and immerse yourself in its 21-acre garden oasis.
Twenty minutes southeast of the capital, Mutrah, eastern Muscat’s moody medieval core, begs to be explored on foot – so ditch your rental car for sandals or flats for a stroll through the Middle East’s most storied bazaar, the Mutrah Souk. It’s a multifarious maze of pathways, flanked by merchants’ houses, but stays on the right side of kitsch, with vendors selling spices, homewares, pointy babouche slippers and beautiful mandoos (wooden chests) – just remember that haggling remains a way of life here, so prepare to bargain accordingly.
Place to stay: The Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah is three hotels in one, where the intimacy of a luxury private hotel overlaps with a medina-sized resort.
Day 3: Ras Al JinzRas al Jinz, the easternmost point of Arabia, is also where the road runs out into the sea. It’s the Gulf’s premier nesting site for endangered green turtles and a bold project to ring-fence this habitat and educate local fishermen has been gathering momentum for the past few years. Torch-lit tours now run nightly during nesting season, giving visitors an educational glimpse into the species’ life cycle, while keeping human interference to a bare minimum.
Place to stay: The Ras Al Jinz Turtle Reserve has 15 eco-tents with air-con that overlook the nesting site, with zip-down canvas sheets that peel back to reveal the headland ablaze in colour at sunrise and sunset.
Day 4: Ash Sharqiyah SandsThe desert of Oman captures the essence of storybook Arabia. The ghosts of medieval Maghrebi explorer Ibn Battuta and post-war British explorer and writer Wilfred Thesiger haunt the Empty Quarter, but it is the Ash Sharqiyah Sands – more accessible on this self-drive road trip circuit and better set up for tourists – that burns longer in the memory. This is a wild landscape of layered dunes and bare-branched trees, and there are dunes to climb up and sandboard down, million-star skies to gawp at, and – the clincher – only camels to share it with.
Place to stay: The Desert Night Camp near Al Wasil offers top-notch luxury with a cluster of gorgeous yet cool glamping huts built for the harsh heat.
Day 5: NizwaNow head northwest, through a whirlwind of spectacular desert scenery, to savour the cultural past in Nizwa. The city’s 17th-century fort has all the sandstone turrets, labyrinthine passageways and magic-looking carpets of Disney’s Aladdin; everything, in fact, apart from the genie in the bottle. The Nizwa Souq next door, meanwhile, is another revelation, particularly on a Friday, when the traditional goat market is in full swing. Come early: it draws in farmers from across northern Oman and is a glimpse of an almost medieval world.
Place to stay: With so many luxury hotels in Oman nowadays, it’s a breath of fresh air to find a place still rooted in the past. The Antique Inn is such a guesthouse, with a rooftop terrace in earshot of the call to prayer from the nearby mosque.
Day 6: Jebel ShamsAt 3,028m, Jebel Shams in the Al Hajar Mountains is to Oman what Everest is to the Himalayas: it’s Arabia’s totem peak, a mountain of the sun where canyon edges lead to thrilling walks on its rim. A drive into this range scoots past the two-million-year-old Al Hoota Cave, a dramatic grotto home to hundreds of stalactites and stalagmites, subterranean lakes and an alien breed of blind, transparent, pink-skinned fish, known as Bu Naseh. Scare easily? Perhaps it’s best not to tell you bats and spiders live down there, too.
Place to stay: Sama Heights Resort & Spa sits at an altitude of 2,100m, making it a blissful escape from the desert heat.
Day 7: Wadi Ghul, Al Jabal Al AkhdarMuch of Oman’s most thrilling adventures can be found on mountainous Jabal Akhdar on the Saiq Plateau. Instructors lead all sorts of chest-puffing bike tours and toe-tingling climbing routes around helter-skeltering Wadi Ghul, and whether you’re interested in scrambling or simply sitting put, Arabia’s Grand Canyon will have you covered.
Place to stay: For a picture-perfect stay, with gorgeous canyon views from the pool, restaurants and villas, try Alila Jabal Akhdar – it’s a sanctuary of possibility.
Of all the lures of Al Jabal Al Akhdar, one of the most compelling is what lies hidden in the canyons snaking off from Wadi al Muaydin. For the past few centuries, several villages have lain in ruined obscurity, and today they remain framed by stepped terraces occasionally used for cultivating fruits and Damask roses that perfume the air. One of the most famous lost villages is Wadi Bani Habib, which once housed 60 families. A hike around its ancient aflaj irrigation channels, skeletal houses and rock stairways is as evocative as old-time Oman gets.
Place to stay: The unapologetically luxurious Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort has been named the most beautiful hotel in Oman several times. It’s not hard to see why. Handily, it also runs tours to Wadi Bani Habib.
Drop down from the mountains and accelerate back east to Muscat for one last adventure: speeding on a cruiser from the Al Mouj marina, with dolphins chasing in your wake. The community harbour is the gateway to the Sea of Oman and you’re on the way to the uninhabited Ad Dimaniyat Islands, so don a mask and fins, then somersault into the blue to blow bubbles with turtles, clownfish and (maybe) the odd whale shark. The sun will be as intense as the colour of the coral, so pack SPF50 for everyone.
Place to stay: Kempinski Hotel Muscat is close to the marina and is the perfect place to chill on your last day, with a private beachfront and nearly a dozen restaurants. It’s also a short drive from Muscat International Airport for your next-day departure.
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