11-day road trip in Oman - around Mascat
- Melanie
- Jan 25
- 8 min read
Updated: Apr 21
Route, travel tips & recommendations for your road trip
by Melanie
Here you will find all the relevant information about the route around the Mascat region, our highlights and our experiences - all in a nutshell. For a better overview, you can use the table of contents as a guide.
In some cases, I have also created a separate blog entry for certain excursions. There you will find a little more information and impressions. But I'll keep it short here too and have summarised everything important.
Content
Basic information about travelling to Oman
Here you will find important information for your roadtrip to Oman:
A passport valid for at least 6 months is required to enter the country.
A visa is not required for a stay of up to 14 days, only for a stay of more than 14 days a visa must be applied for. This visa can be applied for here: Home - Evisa
The currency is the Omani Rial (OR, OMR, RO). Cash is best obtained locally from cash machines. You can pay by credit card almost everywhere, but you should always have some cash with you.
No special vaccinations are required. Medical care in Oman is very good. As with all trips, international health insurance is recommended.
Oman is a very safe country to travel to. Even if the region does not necessarily suggest it, women can also move around freely and safely on their own here. Burglaries, thefts and violent offences are practically non-existent..
We found Oman and its people to be very open, friendly and tolerant. Everyone was very friendly and courteous towards tourists. But I also think it was because we respected their customs and traditions. This applies above all to clothing: shoulders and knees should always be covered for both men and women. Further information on clothing can be found under the questions.
Important for your road trip - the speed limits: A speed limit of 120 km/h applies on the motorways. This is checked by speed cameras every few kilometres.
Depending on what time of year you are travelling to Oman: If it is raining or rain is forecast, the wadis should not be entered. There is a risk of flash floods - so always pay attention to the weather forecast.
Anyone entering the homes of locals while travelling should take their shoes off at the door. The same applies to mosques.
Taking photos of locals is only ‘allowed’ if you have asked them for permission beforehand.
Our route
Here you can see a rough overview of our accommodation locations with the respective number of overnight stays.
You can find hotel recommendations here.
To get an idea of how many kilometres or hours there are between the individual stops, you will find a table in the next section.
from | to | distance | time |
Mascat | Nizwa | 160 km | 1h 40 min |
Nizwa | Jebel Shams | 91 km | 2h |
Jebel Shams | Bidiyya (Ausgangspunkt für die Wüste) | 270 km | 4h |
Bidiyya (Ausgangspunkt für die Wüste) | Thousand Nights Camp Wahiba Sands | 40 km | 1h |
Thousand Nights Camp Wahiba Sands | Bidiyya | 40 km | 1h |
Bidiyya | Wadi Shab | 146 km | 1h 50min |
Wadi Shab | Maskat | 163 km | 1h 50min |
Our activities
day | destination | activity | recommendations / tips |
1 | Mascat |
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2 | Mascat |
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3 | Weiterfahrt nach Nizwa |
| One of the two old towns (Imti or Birkat al Mawz) is enough: have a look at Birkat Al Mawz - take the car to this address and walk up the small hill, then you have a great view of the palm trees and the town - we didn't go to the town itself |
4 | Nizwa |
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5 | Onward journey to the Jebel Shams mountains | Hike "Balcony Walk" | How to get to Sama Heigh Resort:
How to get to the Start of the Balcony Walk:
Plan enough time for the journey so that you still have enough time for the hike. We didn't walk all the way to the end - as you always see the same thing at some point - we were out and about for around 2 hours and 30 minutes in total. |
6 | Onward journey to the Wahiba Sands desert | Hiking in the dunes and watching the sunset and stars | You can find more detailed information in the separate blog post. |
7 | Onward journey to Wadi Shab
| Stop over at Wadi Hawer: hiking, climbing, swimming |
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8 | Onward journey to the beach hotel in Mascat | Stopover at Bimmah Sinkhole and Wadi Al Arbeein |
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9 | Mascat | Day at the beach and visit to the ‘Oman Avenues’ shopping mall | |
10 | Mascat | Visit to the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque
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11 | Mascat | Day at the beach and flight home |
There are many other options for activities around Mascat, but we didn't do any of them. I would like to mention them to you anyway:
Walking on Qurum Beach
Amouage factory - the famous Omani perfume is produced here
Bandar Al Khiran - excursion with kayaks
Dhow trip at the marina Bandar al Rowdha e.g. coastal tour at sunset
Our highlights of the road trip
Snorkelling at the Daymaniat Islands
Hiking, climbing and swimming in Wadi Hawer
Trip to the Wahiba Sands desert
Further impressions of all activities
Impressions from Mascat
Mutrah Corniche and the Royal Opera House Mascat
Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque
Impressions from Nizwa
Above the rooftops of Nizwa, the Nizwa Souq and impressions of the old town
Impressions from Birkat Al Mawz
View over the palm gardens to the ruined town of Birkat Al Mawz
Impressions from Jebel Shams
Drive to the Jebel Shams mountains and hike ‘Balcony Walk’
Impressions from Wadi Dhum, Wadi Al Arbeein & Bimmah Sinkhole
Wadi Dhum, Wadi Al Arbeein and Bimmah Sinkhole
Hotel recommendations
I have linked our accommodation to Booking.com - you can view it there directly.
Ort | Unsere Hotels | weitere Hotelempfehlungen |
Mascat - City Stroll | ||
Mascat - Beach time | ||
Nizwa | ||
Jebel Shams | ||
Wahiba Sands | ||
Wadi Shab |
Restaurant & Café recommendations
Restaurants in Mascat
Bab Sharqi: very good Lebanese cuisine (the best falafel in town)
Bait Al Yasmine: very good Syrian cuisine (terrific halloumi)very good Syrian cuisine (terrific halloumi)
Rozna: very good Omani cuisine, in a fort ambience
Zahr El Laymoun Mascat: very good Lebanese cuisine
Bai Al Luban Omani Restaurant: very good Omani cuisine - perhaps a little more touristy than the other restaurants
Restaurants und Cafés in Nizwa
Anat Café: Nice café and restaurant with a great view over the city - unfortunately the wrong address is given in google maps. You can find the correct address here.
Rawaq: very good Omani cuisine
Restaurant in Wadi Shab / Tiwi
Omani restaurant lunch & dinner: very authentic Omani cuisine, located just 1 minute away from the aforementioned accommodation Wadi Shab Beach Villa. It is very hidden, but it is worth looking for.
Questions you might ask yourself during your planning
During my planning, I came up with so many questions that I didn't get at all or only got by reading lots of different blogs and very long texts. I would like to provide you with some brief and concise questions and the corresponding answers.
Do I need a 4x4 vehicle for the road trip in Oman?
You do NOT need a 4x4 vehicle for the route we did.
You only need a 4x4 if you want to drive through the desert yourself. However, there is a paid shuttle service from most of the accommodations and you can leave your car in a car park.
For all other routes, it is possible to drive a normal car, you just have to drive slowly.
Recommendation: if you want a more relaxed journey, take a 4x4. You'll get from A to B faster and without worries.
Here are a few impressions of the Jebel Shams Balcony Walk car park and the cars we saw there.
Do I have to book an activity in the desert (jeep tour, sunset drive, etc.) to experience the desert?
No.
You can hike into the dunes on foot and still experience the desert up close. You can do this at sunset as well as at sunrise.
If you want a bit more action, you can of course book a tour like this.
At the Thousand Nights Camp there are ‘surfboards’ that you can take to ride down the dunes on the way back.
Can I also walk into the dunes when it's dark to look at the starry sky?
We were advised not to do this at our camp. As soon as you have crossed several dunes, you can no longer see the camp and can quickly lose your bearings.
We didn't try it - especially as I had a bit of respect for what animals we might encounter in the dark that you can't really see.
Is it okay to wear the traditional dress (dishdasha for men and abaya for women) of the Omanis? Or is that disrespectful?
We didn't try it ourselves, but my companion had considered it. That's why I looked into it and asked a travel planner about it.
The answer is: that's okay - the Omanis are very open-minded and tend to respond happily and with compliments.
How else should I dress?
That depends on what you're planning to do.
The basic rule is: cover your shoulders and knees, for both men and women.
When doing sports - including hiking in wadis or in the mountains: shorts are okay, but here too it's better to wear something a little longer and wider
When swimming, e.g. in wadis: swimwear with a T-shirt and shorts
In hotels and private beaches: Here you can move freely in shorts and also wear normal swimwear
I hope you have found all the important information for your planning here and that your questions have been answered. If not, please get in touch or leave a comment with your question. I look forward to your feedback and wish you a great time in Oman.
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