Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Activities
The sea and the mountains dominate Muscat, giving plenty of amenities for water-related
sports and some independent hiking.
Muscat Diving & Adventure Centre
( 24 485663;
www.holiday-
in-oman.com
)
can help with activity-based trips in the capital area and beyond.
Four-Wheel Drive Excursions
Muscat's rocky mountains and soft-sand dunes offer some exciting and challenging 4WD
driving. Close to the city there are plenty of places to explore, especially near Yitti and en
route to Al-Seifa. For more adventurous routes in Oman, pick up a copy of
Off-Road in
the Sultanate of Oman,
by Lonely Planet author Jenny Walker and Sam Owen.
Many people refer to this activity as 'wadi-bashing' as taking a 4WD into remote ter-
rain can lead, through careless or insensitive driving, to irreparable degradation of the en-
vironment. With care and concern for the desert, however, going off-road is easily one of
the highlights of visiting Oman.
It's also possible to take 4WD tours to many off-road destinations.
Beaches
Although all beaches in Oman are public, many of the big hotels have attractive beachside
facilities (pools, restaurants, gardens) open to non-guests for a fee. Women may feel more
comfortable swimming in this environment than in the sea at public beaches. The Crowne
Plaza Hotel is at the head of a beautiful, sandy bay and has access to a secluded scrap of
beach. Admission costs OR8 per day for an adult, OR6 for children. InterContinental
Muscat (
Click here
)
offers an adult day rate of OR10 (OR6 for children). A taxi from
Mutrah should cost around OR5. At present, all beaches in Muscat are 'public', so there's
nothing to stop a keen walker starting at Qurm Nature Reserve and walking all the way to
Seeb, a distance of some 20km or so.
Birdwatching
There are several birdwatching opportunities in Muscat and over 450 bird species to look
A new reserve with hides is being planned at Al-Ansab lagoons, part of the city's waste-
water facility.
Hiking
There are some rewarding mountain walks in the Muscat area. Several two- to three-hour
walks in and around Mutrah and Old Muscat afford excellent views of the two port areas
and take the rambler up past ruined villages. These walks are covered in Anne Dale and
