Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(Souq St; 10am-1pm & 4.30-9pm)
Adjacent to the Ladies' Souq. The elaborate bottles alone
are temptation enough to enter the shop, and being daubed in exotic musk and ambergris
is one of Arabia's great experiences.
Safen Al Khaleej
CRAFT
Between the Flamingo roundabout and the new harbour, this workshop sells handcrafted
model wooden dhows. You'll have to take pot luck with opening hours.
Information
There are numerous banks, most with ATMs, along Main St and Souq St.
Internet Café
(Souq St; per hour 500 baisa; 8am-1pm & 4-10pm Sat-Thu, 4-10pm Fri)
Occupies the upper
floor of the Digital Photo Express shop.
Getting There & Around
Public transport leaves from near the Sur Hotel. Buses to Muscat via Ibra (OR4, 4¼
hours) depart at 6am and 2.30pm; via the coastal highway (OR3, 2½ hours) they depart at
7am. Shared taxis to the Rusayl roundabout in Muscat via the coastal highway cost OR4
(engaged cost OR20).
Taxis cost 200 baisa per ride anywhere in Sur.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Ayjah
Lying on the other side of the lagoon from Sur, the pretty, whitewashed village of Ayjah is
worth a visit. The renovated
Al-Ayjah Fort
OFFLINE MAP
GOOGLE MAP
(admission 500 baisa;
8.30am-2.30pm Sun-Thu)
seems to have been built as part and parcel of the surrounding mer-
chant houses with their elaborately carved doors and lotus-pillared porches. If you wander
over to the old
lighthouse
, there is a fine view of Sur.
Ayjah boasts its own hotel,
Al-Ayjah Plaza Hotel
OFFLINE MAP
GOOGLE MAP
( 25
544433;
www.alayjahplazahotel.com
; s/d OR41/47; )
. Located on the edge of the lagoon, across
the water from Sur, it offers good-value modern rooms with big windows. The hotel's
