Smart Self-Managed Tours

Country guide

Oman

A photograph of Oman
Photograph · Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 4.0

Oman is 315,331 km2 holding roughly 5.46 million people, which makes it the third-largest country on the Arabian Peninsula and one of the least crowded. Muscat, the capital and largest city, is strung out along the Gulf of Oman between mountains and water instead of spreading from a centre, so seeing it means driving one long coastal road end to end. The country's northern tip is not attached to the rest: Musandam is an exclave enclosed by the United Arab Emirates, with its own coast on the Strait of Hormuz. Between the capital and the far south lies Arabian Sea coastline and desert.

Cities

Every city catalogued in this country so far, ranked by how much there is to see.

Practical information

Language spoken
Arabic; English is widely used in visitor services
National practical orientation; regional and minority languages may also be used
Dialling code
+968
International calling code; local area and mobile prefixes still apply
Currency
Omani rial (OMR)
Use the official local currency; card acceptance varies by place
Emergency number
9999
Use only for an emergency; tourist assistance may use a separate number
Plug type
Type G · 240 V
Check that chargers support the recorded voltage before using an adapter
Tap water
Not recorded
No verified nationwide visitor drinking-water statement was recorded

Planning a visit

  1. January: no seasonality data recorded
  2. February: no seasonality data recorded
  3. March: no seasonality data recorded
  4. April: no seasonality data recorded
  5. May: no seasonality data recorded
  6. June: no seasonality data recorded
  7. July: no seasonality data recorded
  8. August: no seasonality data recorded
  9. September: no seasonality data recorded — this month
  10. October: no seasonality data recorded
  11. November: no seasonality data recorded
  12. December: no seasonality data recorded

Top things to see

Ranked by importance — sitelinks, pageviews and heritage status, not editor preference.

  1. Abi Darda Mosque
    09 30 min

    Abi Darda Mosque

    مسجد أبي الدرداء

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  2. Al Abha Mosque
    14 30 min

    Al Abha Mosque

    مسجد الأبهى

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  3. al Ameen Mosque
    15 30 min

    al Ameen Mosque

    جامع الأمين

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  4. Al Araimi Mosque
    17 30 min

    Al Araimi Mosque

    جامع العريمي

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  5. Al Awabi Mosque
    18 30 min

    Al Awabi Mosque

    جامع العوابي

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  6. Al Azaiba Mosque
    19 30 min

    Al Azaiba Mosque

    مسجد العذيبة

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  7. al Barakah Mosque
    22 30 min

    al Barakah Mosque

    مسجد البركة

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  8. Al Barakat Mosque
    23 30 min

    Al Barakat Mosque

    جامع البركات

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  9. Al Estiqama Mosque
    24 30 min

    Al Estiqama Mosque

    مسجد الاستقامة

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  10. AlGulanda bin Masoud mosque
    25 30 min

    AlGulanda bin Masoud mosque

    جامع الإمام الجلندى بن مسعود

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  11. Al Hakim Mosque
    26 30 min

    Al Hakim Mosque

    جامع الحكيم

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  12. Al Haqq Mosque
    27 30 min

    Al Haqq Mosque

    مسجد الحق

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  13. Al Huda Mosque
    28 30 min

    Al Huda Mosque

    مسجد الهدى

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  14. al Ihsan Mosque
    31 30 min

    al Ihsan Mosque

    مسجد الاحسان

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  15. Al Ikhwa Mosque
    32 30 min

    Al Ikhwa Mosque

    مسجد الأخوة

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  16. Al Irfan Mosque
    34 30 min

    Al Irfan Mosque

    جامع العرفان

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  17. Al Islam Mosque
    35 30 min

    Al Islam Mosque

    جامع الإسلام

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  18. al Istiqamah Mosque
    36 30 min

    al Istiqamah Mosque

    مسجد الأستقامة

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  19. Al Jaleel Mosque
    37 30 min

    Al Jaleel Mosque

    مسجد الجليل

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  20. AlKawthar Mosque
    39 30 min

    AlKawthar Mosque

    مسجد الكوثر

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  21. Al Khor Mosque
    40 30 min

    Al Khor Mosque

    مسجد الخور

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  22. Al Khoudh Mosque
    41 30 min

    Al Khoudh Mosque

    جامع الخوض

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  23. Al Kuwaiti Mosque
    44 30 min

    Al Kuwaiti Mosque

    جامع الكويتي

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  24. al Mab Mosque
    45 30 min

    al Mab Mosque

    مسجد المآب

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  25. Al Majid Mosque
    46 30 min

    Al Majid Mosque

    مسجد الماجد

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  26. Al Majid Mosque
    47 30 min

    Al Majid Mosque

    مسجد الماجد

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  27. Al Moeen Mosque
    49 30 min

    Al Moeen Mosque

    جامع المعين

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  28. Al Muhaimen Mosque
    51 30 min

    Al Muhaimen Mosque

    مسجد المحيمن

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  29. al Mu'izz Mosque
    52 30 min

    al Mu'izz Mosque

    جامع المعز

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  30. al Mustafa Mosque
    53 30 min

    al Mustafa Mosque

    جامع المصطفى

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  31. al Noor Mosque
    54 30 min

    al Noor Mosque

    مسجد النور

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  32. Al Rahma Mosque
    56 30 min

    Al Rahma Mosque

    مسجد الرحمة

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  33. Al Rahman Mosque
    57 30 min

    Al Rahman Mosque

    مسجد الرحمن

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  34. al Ridha Mosque
    59 30 min

    al Ridha Mosque

    مسجد الرضى

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  35. Al Ridwan
    60 30 min

    Al Ridwan

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  36. Al Samad Mosque
    63 30 min

    Al Samad Mosque

    مسجد الصمد

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  37. Al Sarooj Mosque
    64 30 min

    Al Sarooj Mosque

    مسجد الصاروج

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  38. Al Tawbah Mosque
    67 30 min

    Al Tawbah Mosque

    جامع التوبة

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  39. Al Tawheed Mosque
    68 30 min

    Al Tawheed Mosque

    جامع التوحيد

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  40. Al Wadood Mosque
    69 30 min

    Al Wadood Mosque

    مسجد الودود

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  41. Al Yaqeen mosque
    70 30 min

    Al Yaqeen mosque

    مسجد اليقين

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  42. Anas bin Malik Mosque
    71 30 min

    Anas bin Malik Mosque

    مسجد أنس بن مالك

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  43. an Nahdah Mosque
    72 30 min

    an Nahdah Mosque

    مسجد النهدة

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  44. Az Zulfa Mosque
    74 30 min

    Az Zulfa Mosque

    جامع الزلفى

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  45. Bab al Salam Mosque
    75 30 min

    Bab al Salam Mosque

    مسجد باب السلام

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  46. Baushar Mosque
    78 30 min

    Baushar Mosque

    مسجد بوشر

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  47. Eidgah
    81 30 min

    Eidgah

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  48. Eid Musalla
    82 30 min

    Eid Musalla

    مصلى العيد

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  49. Eid Prayer
    83 30 min

    Eid Prayer

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  50. Fathima al Zahra Mosque
    84 30 min

    Fathima al Zahra Mosque

    مسجد السيده فاطمه الزهراء

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  51. Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch - Muscat
    85 30 min

    Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch - Muscat

    الكنيسة الأرثوذكسية اليونانية في أنطاكية - مسقط

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  52. Hajj Ali Musa Mosque
    88 30 min

    Hajj Ali Musa Mosque

    مسجد حاج علي موسى

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  53. Halban Masjed
    89 30 min

    Halban Masjed

    مسجد حلبان

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  54. Hayy al Marafa Mosque
    94 30 min

    Hayy al Marafa Mosque

    جامع حي المعرفة

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  55. ibn Omair Library
    96 30 min

    ibn Omair Library

    مكتبة ابن عمير

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  56. Ibrahim Al Khalil Mosque
    97 30 min

    Ibrahim Al Khalil Mosque

    مسجد إبراهيم الخليل

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat
  57. Imam Azzan Bin Qais Mosque
    99 30 min

    Imam Azzan Bin Qais Mosque

    مسجد الأمام عزان بن قيس

    • Notable
    • Place of worship
    • Muscat

Source: OpenStreetMap contributors, Wikidata ·

Common questions

How long should a first trip to Oman be?

Allow seven to ten days for Muscat, Nizwa, the Hajar Mountains and one desert or coastal leg. Salalah is a separate southern journey rather than a quick add-on, so include it only when the schedule can absorb a domestic flight and another base.

What entry documents are needed for Oman?

Oman’s Royal Oman Police eVisa portal is the authoritative place to check eligibility, stay length and document requirements. Apply through that service when required and match the application to the passport and purpose of travel; a Gulf itinerary does not create a common visa across neighbouring states.

What is the best way to travel around Oman?

A car or licensed driver is useful beyond Muscat because forts, wadis, mountain villages and desert camps are dispersed. Intercity buses serve principal towns, but access roads vary; confirm whether four-wheel drive is required and never enter a wadi when official flood warnings are active.

When is a practical time to visit Oman?

October through March is the practical window for Muscat, the interior and desert camping. Salalah’s khareef is a different seasonal proposition, and mountain temperatures can be much lower than the coast, so an Oman-wide itinerary needs region-specific weather checks.

What money and payment basics apply in Oman?

The Omani rial is the official currency and is subdivided into one thousand baisa, which matters when reading prices. Carry cash for smaller inland stops while using banks or authorised exchange services; verify the currency and decimal placement before approving a payment.

What practical safety details should I save for Oman?

For police, fire or ambulance assistance, save 9999; Oman uses Type G sockets at 240 V. National tap-water guidance is Not recorded here, so confirm locally at each hotel or camp, where supply arrangements may differ from Muscat.