Oman

🇴🇲OMAN SEPTEMBER 2025🇴🇲

Last week I went on a 6-night tour of Oman, from the moment we arrived, I was impressed at how calm and clean everything was - the airport experience was such a pleasure and the passport officers even smiled!

I was a guest of Tui Tours - we followed the itinerary of a tour they offer, mixed in with some properties from the Tui main brochure.

✈️On Sunday, 31st August, I met my travelling companions at London Heathrow Terminal 4. We checked in, got through security, did a little shopping and got to know each other over a drink whilst we waited to board our flight

☀️Monday morning saw us arrive in Muscat, we then had a short transfer to our first hotel (transfer was about 20 minutes) - the Hotel Kempinski - the property is set right on the beach and has 3 pools (one just for children) and several restaurants. The morning was spent relaxing poolside and acclimatising to the heat! After a tour of the hotel & lunch, we were taken to the harbour area of Muscat, where we visited the Muttrah Souq, the Corniche and Al Alam Palace. The area is vibrant, colourful, a nd has a lot of local products to purchase, as well as a beautiful sea view, making it a must-visit destination when in Muscat. We then headed to the Ritz-Carlton for a site inspection and dinner, before returning to the Kempinski.

🕌 Tuesday saw us check out of the Kempinski (would have loved to have stayed longer and would definitely recommend/return).

We were then taken to the amazing sight that is the Grand Mosque of Muscat, where we had a very informative tour. This was followed by a short journey to the Royal Opera House, where we were also given a tour. Following this, we visited The Chedi Hotel - absolutely fantastic - I would highly recommend this hotel. We had a tour of the property and lunch.

In the afternoon, we headed into the Jebel Akhtar mountains and checked into our next hotel - the stunningly located Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar resort, think 5* luxury, wonderful infinity pool & amazing mountain views. We took a tour of the hotel, had time to enjoy the pool, visited Diana‘s Point and then enjoyed a very good dinner in one of the hotel‘s two restaurants.

🪨On Wednesday morning, we checked out and went to look at another two hotels in the same area. Both were good, but for me, the Hotel Indigo was the winner. After these hotel visits, we had lunch in a local restaurant, and then we were taken to Oman Across Ages - this is the largest museum in Oman – and showcases the history of the country and the visions they have for the future of Oman. After this, we checked into the Intercity Nizwa hotel. This hotel is featured in both of the tours Tui offers in Oman. It's a good, clean city hotel with a pool and restaurant (if you don't feel like going out, however, it is well located next to a shopping centre and local restaurants. After checking in, we had a tour of the property, some free time, and then we were taken to the Golden Tulip Hotel for a tour and dinner - another good choice for those wanting to stay in Nizwa.

🏜️After breakfast on Thursday, we visited the town of Nizwa, where we had time to explore the Souq and local shops - a great place to buy those holiday souvenirs, and then we had a guided tour of Nizwa Fort. After lunch in a local restaurant, we took a drive out into the desert (this is also part of both Tui tours to Oman). We stayed in tented rooms, had a tour of the property, which included a spa and villas with private pool (highly recommend) and enjoyed ourselves on a dune bashing experience in our 44x4s. There was plenty of time to stop to take photos and witness the desert sunset. We then headed back to camp, where we dined under the stars buffet style with local music played too.

🐟On Friday, we drove for about an hour to go swimming at Wadi Bani Khaled - a Wadi is a series of naturally filled pools of water in a mountain valley. We had a fun time here, swimming with the small fish in the water. From the Wadi, we headed back to Muscat, had a tour and lunch at the Al Falaj Hotel (again featured in both Tui tours of Oman). After this, we headed for what really was the icing on the already delicious cake - a stay at the Shangri-La Barr Jissah Resort & Spa, a wonderful 6* hotel located on a wonderful beach. We enjoyed some relaxation time, then we had a final group meeting where we discussed our thoughts on the past few days, had a tour of the property, followed by dinner and drinks later on the terrace.

✈️Saturday saw us check out after breakfast and head back to the airport for our flight home. New friends have been made, inspections of some wonderful hotels have taken place, many new experiences have been enjoyed, and memories of the amazing country that Oman is have been created.

Thank you to Omaitst's people and culture; it has been a pleasure.

Thank you also to TToursurs, I have learnt a lot during this tour.