in2it54

I'm plotting and planning for next years vacation - July 2014.
Oz to Europe and Europe to OZ, via the GCC countries.
We did a similar thing this year (June, just gone) and spent 6 days in the UAE - loved it.

Oman, namely Muscat and Salalah present beautifully on the web, with air travel between the cities relatively inexpensive.
Muscat, with a road trip (loop) via mountains and coast, reads well.
Salalah, in the midst of the Southern Monsoons sounds different/interesting.

Say 7 days split between the two locations, as a layover whilst transiting the Gulf.

Any thoughts ? One thing I have noticed, prices as seen in hotel accommodation, seem a little higher in Muscat (MCT v DXB). True, or just my imagination ? I read somewhere that Omanis drive to Dubai to do their shopping. Yes ? (not from Salalah though - that would be a bit of a trek)

dunk

I think you'll love Oman. It's a much more relaxed, low-rise and IMHO authentic experience. Omanis are genuinely friendly, welcoming and helpful; and you're much more likely to interact with them than Emiratis in Dubai.

Definitely try to get out to the desert and mountains.

Yes, it is more expensive, probably a function of fewer hotels and most of them higher end. Food needn't be so if you're prepared to venture away from the usual hotels and restaurants, but that's no different from Dubai.

Muscat to Dubai is at least a 5 hour drive and there are enough malls in Oman. Perhaps for specialist purchases ?

IAN-UK

If you mean splitting your stay between Muscat and Salalah then you might want to limit the Salalah days: there's plenty to see, but not much that is radically different to what you'll find around the Muscat/Nizwa/Sohar circuit, unless you are planning to be there in next year's Khareef season.

If this frees some time then you could make a trip to the Omani exclave of Musandam, the dramatic pointy bit sticks into the Straight of Hormuz.

in2it54

Nothing of any greater interest has surfaced - I'm still thinking Oman.

A couple of additional queries.
Salalah, July (when I plan be there) is indeed in the Khareef season.
What other attractions are on offer other than the obvious, being lazing in a cool 25'C while the rest of Oman swelters in 55'C.
Assume markets, bazaars, concerts, thearte ??
At this time, it's a very popular arabic holiday destination, families, children - will it be rediculously crowded ?
There are two styles of hotel accomodation. I see 4 or 5 of the "big " 5* resorts, out a bit and on the beach, then a second level of hotels - more city centre.
I wasn't planning to book a hire car.
Do I chase the 5* and the beach, or city centre and markets/shops/restraunts/nightlife ?

Looking at 2 full days, flying out on the 3rd.
Daytime tours with Taxi or car/driver.

Looked at Musandam. Seems easier to get to from Dubai (by road).
I will look at ferry choices.

IAN-UK

Salalah gets very crowded at odd times during the Khareef - depending on holidays elsewhere. Dhofar/Salalah puts on a tourism festival with planned events: sport and shows (we're not talking a mini Olympics or Vegas ). I think a timetable should be published some weeks before.

Two good hotels are the Crowne Plaza and Hilton: I love the Hilton, but it's reassuringly expensive. The CP aint cheap, but it's is probably much better for a short tourist visit. It's a popular hotel and something of local hotspot. There are other locally owned and run hotels, more central, but I can't say much about them.

As for Musandam, you can save time by flying to Khasab from/through Muscat.

csdf

I haven't been, but friends who have been to Salalah during Khareef say it's pretty much like being in Wales: cold and drizzly. Its attraction is greatest for those of us living in the Middle East where rain, cold and drizzle are unusual and interesting. If you live in a temperate climate, I'm not sure you'll find Salalah very exciting. Combine this with a bazillion Saudis and Emiratis carooming around in their Landcruisers and more expensive hotels.

IAN-UK

Manchester, and indeed Wales, have missed an opportunity to promote a miserable climate

in2it54

You are dampening (so to speak) my enthusiasim for this Salalah adventure.
May be I put more effort and sightseeing into the road loop (mountains, desert and coastline) out of Muscat.
I could even do more with Musandam - oneway by ferry as part of the holiday.

Thanks all.

rivlinm

Thinking of booking a 7 hour layover in MCT on my way to Tehran. Assuming they want to give me a visa.

Anyway, is that enough time to do anything in MCT? 1900-0100 timeframe so it would mostly be night.

Hire a driver to show me around and have a meal? Anything more?

MastaHanky

That should be plenty of time to get up to the Corniche and wander through the Souk. There are plenty of restaurants adjacent to them. Make sure you negotiate a fare with your cab driver before you get in - they love milking the non-natives. The Muscat airport is fairly small and easy to navigate and security was super-fast for me, so I imagine you'll have plenty of time.

Keep in mind there will likely be a visa fee (~$50 if I remember right) for that seven hours.

price123

The Grand Hyatt is a good deal on cash+points. If you have time, the Alila Jabal Akhdar is in a beautiful location (will report back on what it's like in 2-3 weeks).

tshep

How was your stay at the Alila?

price123

Thanks for the reminder. Didn't realise I had posted that here! My review of hotel with lots of photos is here.

The Alila is a beautiful property - really stunning. It was lovely just to sit outside on the balcony and admire the view or use the pools. The drive there was breath-taking (we booked through the hotel as 4x4 needed) and on the outbound our driver was friendly and drove carefully. On the way back to Muscat, the driver drover too fast, used his mobile at times and we didn't feel safe - at one point he ended up hitting and killing a mountain goat and left the door open whilst 'tending' to it so we were distressed by the sounds of a dying animal (soft Western viewpoint).

We were greeted with arabic coffee and dates by the leisure concierge - nice touch and they tried to educate about Omani hospitality. Although booking a Mountain-view suite, they upgraded us to a Horizon-view. We would have preferred to keep our first floor room instead of ground floor, so wish they had communicated this and given us a choice. The room was nice enough - very comfortable bed but only curtains to the bathroom, not doors and balcony wasn't very private (thus had to use fully dressed).

Dining was good though could be better - breakfast was limited and international. Some problems with communication after we were informed the buffet cost 15 OMR but were then charged 18 OMR because there was fish on the menu (?). No way would they budge on price to charge what was quoted before eating.

The hotel is supposed to have a range of complimentary activities available but there were none. We spoke to GM about this and he said that they were coming, but it really isn't that hard to provide a guided walk or a transfer to the nearest town. We took a self-guided walk one day, got lost and ended up having to climb up very steep sides to a canyon, not sure whether we would need mountain rescue! A memory for sure and it was interesting to see an abandoned village, but the advised path was anything but clear. Beautiful pool, reasonable gym, spa mostly good (although don't book a pedicure).

Staff were mostly warm but major problem with communication. We asked multiple staff where we could buy the bed and were told info would be put in room, then that they would email but it never happened. I emailed the hotel (multiple people including the GM) after our stay but never received a reply. Booking itself was challenging by email (we received a 30% travel agent discount but it took a long time to sort out including being quoted a rate higher than publicly available at first).

The mix of local and western tourists can also be hard. I was walking to the pool with my husband and had to go through reception (this was advised to us as the correct way to go). We wore hotel-provided bathrobes over swimwear and were rushed through by the concierge, yet a local man stopped and shouted at the concierge that I should be in a burka! At the pool, there tended to be groups of Arab men sitting around, taking up all the space by the jacuzzis and often shouting from one group to another. It felt awkward as a Western female to use the pool at these times.

In time, the hotel should develop and the tensions will hopefully ease between Arab and Western guests. However, the present lack of communication is a real problem and if it wasn't for the natural beauty of the place, there would be no reason to go. As it is, I would still go for probably 3 nights to enjoy the scenery.

mysocalledlife

Omani's are extremely authentic and hospitable. Absolutely loved my experience there. I spent 5 days and felt I could have stayed a little longer. You should pay a visit to Al Bustan. Absolutely stunning hotel. The grounds are marvelous with views of ocean and mountains. The actual hotel is reminiscent of a mosque with high ceiling and tile work.

The mountains outside of Muscat are truly breathtaking and their size cannot be comprehended.

Be careful going to Salalah with all of the turmoil in Yemen.

christravelblog

Would not worry to much about that in Salalah. Perfect OK to go there. If you drive from Salalah to Yemen border (of course do not drive actually to it) you have some great places with blowholes and empty white beaches down the mountain. also a great mountain views. Lot of things to do and it was actually start of my road trip through Oman.