Muscat, Oman — Where to Go
Muscat Sightseeing Overview
Sightseeing in Muscat offers a wealth of opportunities. The heart of the capital is wrapped around two harbors: Mutrah and Muscat. Mutrah is famous for its crescent of merchant houses with overhanging balconies, its long corniche, fish market, museum dedicated to Muscat (Bait al-Baranda) and its busy and labyrinthine souk.
Old Muscat, just a few kilometers farther round the coast, comprises mostly the Sultan's Palace and the Diwan (buildings associated with royal governance). Although visitors are not able to enter these buildings, it is an attractive area to walk round.
Farther into the suburbs, the vicinity of Qurm and neighboring Shatti al-Qurm is home to luxury hotels, beaches, Qurm Natural Park, shopping malls, embassies and the Grand Mosque.
Muscat Tourist Information
Ministry of Tourism
Al-Ghubra
Tel: 2458 8700.
Website: www.omantourism.gov.om) in Al-Ghubra
There are no tourist information centers as such but you can pick up some brochures from the helpful desk at the Ministry of Tourism or find information on its website.
Alternatively, National Travel & Tourism (NTT), Ar-Rumaylah St, Wattayah (tel: 2466 0300; www.nttoman.com) acts as an unofficial tourist desk.
Key Attractions in Muscat, Oman
Mutrah Souk
Without doubt, the biggest attraction in Muscat is the old souk that runs through a warren of alleyways off Mutrah Corniche, with cupboard-sized shops selling everything from home-grown frankincense, gold and myrrh to plastic trays and Omani khanja (ceremonial daggers). This is the place to look for strings of lapis lazuli, coral and turquoise, the semi-precious ‘gems’ of the region in bead shops that are festooned with handicrafts from Afghanistan to India. Old wedding chests and wooden doors from village houses are some of the less portable items on offer. The souk offers an experience as well as a shopping trip; pause with a fresh fruit cocktail along one of the labyrinthine alleyways and savour Muscat’s past and present.
Mutrah Corniche, Mutrah
Mutrah Corniche
This sweeping arc of old, balconied buildings and tiled mosque domes, souvenir shops and carpet vendors begins with the early-morning fish market, is punctuated with 18th-century Mutrah Fort and ends with musical fountains overlooking the harbor: it's a popular evening stroll for Muscat's citizens keen on catching the sea breeze. For those feeling energetic, it’s possible to walk from Mutrah to Muscat along the entire length of the corniche, looking out for boiling schools of sardines and leaping dolphins in the calm waves of the Indian Ocean. Muscat Gate Museum marks the entrance to Muscat proper: a gate that until 1970 was locked each night – despite the opening made for passing traffic.
Bait al-Baranda
Opened at the end of 2006, this latest addition to the capital's cultural life is an imaginative and informative museum charting the city's development from prehistoric to modern times. The museum, by the fish roundabout at one end of the corniche, also doubles as an exhibition space and is housed in an attractively restored old Muscat villa.
Al-Mina'a St, just off Mutrah Corniche
Tel: 2471 4262.
Sultan's Palace
Although it's not possible to enter this flight of architectural fancy, a stroll around the perimeter fence from the grand esplanade at the building's entrance to its seafront back garden on Mutrah harbor is a must, if only to see how well it's protected by Forts Al-Jalali and Al-Mirani (both closed to the public). While there, it’s worth noticing the graffiti scratched into the rocks across the harbor: this maritime frivolity is a virtual log book of naval vessels that have docked in this port over the last 200 years or more.
Al-Alam, Old Muscat
Grand Mosque
This quietly serene mosque on the edge of the highway, marking the entry into town, was a gift from the current Sultan to his people marking the 30th year of his reign and boasts the largest hand-loomed carpet in the world - among many other interior wonders. To visit the mosque, discreet clothing is required: this means covering arms and legs and avoiding jeans and tight fitting clothing. Women should cover their hair. The mosque looks particularly spectacular at dawn and dusk, silhouetted against the Hajar Mountains that dominate the city.
Sultan Qaboos Street
Further Distractions
Beyt az-Zubair
Muscat has several small museums dedicated to life before the Renaissance (ie pre-1970) but this collection of antique household items in a beautifully restored residence gives the best idea of Omani heritage. There is also a fine collection of Omani ceremonial daggers and silver jewelry that somehow escaped being melted down and exchanged for gold.
As-Saidiyah St, Old Muscat
Tel: 2473 6688.
Qurm Beach
This uninterrupted beach of pale sand is bejewelled with shells and ornamented with sea birds. It stretches for 20km (12 miles) from the Crowne Plaza Hotel past shaded barbecue areas, coffee shops and three grand hotels, InterContinental Muscat, the Grand Hyatt Muscat and The Chedi. This is where to gain a feel for the soul of Muscat as lady joggers in their abeyas (black clothing) exercise in the morning, football teams gather at sunset and families picnic into the early hours. The adjacent shopping area of Shatti al-Qurm has a traditional craft shop and Bateels, a shop selling irresistible chocolate-covered dates.
Omani Society for Fine Arts
Omani Society for Fine Arts has a regular program of contemporary arts exhibitions.
Shatti al-Qurm
Tel: 2469 4969.
Website: www.omanartsociety.com
