Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The entrance to the
Main Post Office
(An-Nahdah St; 8am-2pm Sat-Wed, 9-11am Thu)
is at the rear
of the building. The
Telephone Office
(cnr An-Nahdah & Al-Montazah Sts;
8am-2.30pm & 4-10pm)
of-
fers fax facilities.
Muscat Pharmacy
is on An-Nahdah St and Salalah has excellent medical facilities at
Sultan Qaboos Hospital
.
Getting There & Away
AIR
The national carrier,
Oman Air
( Muscat 24 531111, Salalah 23 295747; Haffa House),
flies to Muscat
(one way/return from OR32/64, 1½ hours) up to four times daily at variable times.
BUS
ONTC
( 23 292773;
www.ontcoman.com
)
buses to Muscat (one way/return OR7.500/12, 12
hours, three daily) via Nizwa leave from the bus station in the new souq at 7am, 10am and
7pm. You can store luggage in the adjoining ticket office free of charge. There is also a
service to Dubai (one way/return OR11/18) at 3pm. ONTC runs air-conditioned, non-
smoking coaches with toilet and TV on this service. Private bus companies ply the route
with less reliability. Bin Qasim (
Click here
)
offers a service at 4pm and leaves from the
market area near ONTC.
Getting Around
CAR
Hiring a car in Salalah is recommended for exploring, especially during the
khareef
. You
don't strictly need a 4WD unless you want to enjoy some of the country's best camping,
or explore the more rugged roads, but beware of the soft sand on the beaches.
The main car-hire companies can be found on arrival at the airport and Budget is rep-
resented at the Crowne Plaza Resort. Many local companies offer cars for hire, especially
along 23 July St. For competitive rates and help with where to explore,
Salalah Beach Villas
(
23 235999)
hires 2WD/4WD from OR14/37, with 200km free and reductions for week-
long rental.
During the
khareef
the roads into the jebel are notoriously dangerous. They are slippery
and local drivers fail to make allowances for the fog. Camels often cause accidents by
wandering onto the road - if you hit one, you can be sure it will be an extremely expens-
ive female, prize-winning, racing camel.
TAXI & MICROBUS
