The taxi app situation in Oman really deserves a post of its own. Before I left for the trip, I did a bit of research online. I quickly found out that Careem doesn’t operate in Oman, but there were a few local options: Otaxi, Marhaba, and Mwasalat.

First, I tried Mwasalat, only to discover it’s for buses, not taxis. If you want a taxi, you have to call one. Very old-school, especially in a world where we have apps for everything.

Next up was Otaxi. The signup process was straightforward at first - name, email, phone number. But then came the catch: it sends the OTP (one-time password) via WhatsApp. I stopped using WhatsApp after Meta acquired it and refused to reinstall it. So, that was a dead end.

Then I tried Marhaba... same story. It required WhatsApp for OTP. Total fail.

I asked the hotel staff if they recommended any other apps besides Otaxi. They suggested Taleem. Guess what? It also required WhatsApp. At that point, I gave in and installed WhatsApp on my backup phone. Time to register again.

I tried Otaxi, no OTP ever arrived. Same with Marhaba. No matter how long I waited, the code never came through. Finally, I gave Taleem one more shot, and it actually worked. Victory… sort of.

The next challenge? Adding a payment card. I tried several times, but every attempt failed. So, I was stuck with cash-only rides. Naturally, I had forgotten to withdraw cash at the airport.

My last resort was using a regular, licensed taxi. You can sometimes hail them on the street if you’re lucky or call for one. For my first ride, I had to ask reception to call a taxi that accepted card payments. But had the opportunity to compare prices, and the regular taxi was twice as expensive as using the app.

Lesson learned:
Even if you do have WhatsApp, the OTP might still not arrive. And always, always, carry cash in Oman.