10 Days Muscat and Musandam, Oman Extreme

1. 1
   Jour 1

   Quriyat, Bimah Sinkhole, Wadi Shab and Ras Al Jinz

   Pickup is between 08:00 and 08:30 for a short tour of Muscat. Then head for Sur along the coastal route, passing Quriyat, a small fishing village.

   Make a photo stop at the Bimah Sinkhole, then continue along the white sandy beach of Fins, which invites a relaxing swim.

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   Follow the graded track to Wadi Shab, where fresh water flows most of the year beside banana plantations and rocky paths. Swim from pool to pool in its warm water.

   Continue to Sur and Ras Al Hadd, where you spend the night. Lunch and dinner are optional.

   After dinner, visit the Ras Al Jinz turtle sanctuary, a protected green turtle nesting reserve. Watch sea turtles nest and lay eggs on the beach, and you may see baby turtles hatch.

2. 2
   Jour 2

   Wadi Bani Khaled and the Wahiba Sands

   After breakfast, continue to Wadi Bani Khaled, one of the largest and most beautiful wadis in Oman, and enjoy a refreshing swim in its cool water.

   Drive on to the Wahiba Sands, a true desert of constantly shifting sands. Drive through the dunes, try 4x4 dune bashing and ride a camel.

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   Visit a local Bedouin family at home for a close look at their way of life, and share coffee and dates with them.

   Enjoy a campfire and dinner, and spend the night in the desert.

3. 3
   Jour 3

   Nizwa, Round Tower Fort and Jabrin

   After breakfast, drive to Nizwa, the capital of the interior and the birthplace of Islam in the Sultanate of Oman.

   See the 17th-century Round Tower Fort and the souq, known for its Friday cattle auction, hand-carved khanjars (daggers) and ornamental silver jewellery.

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   Visit Jabrin, one of Oman's finest castles, built in the late 17th century. It became a seat of Omani learning and is known for its fine painted ceilings and woodcarvings.

   Overnight in Nizwa.

4. 4
   Jour 4

   Misfat Al Abrien, Jebel Shams and Wadi Ghul

   Drive up a winding road into the hills to the remote mountain village of Misfat Al Abrien, where time seems to stand still.

   Drive up Jebel Shams, at 3,000 metres the highest mountain in Oman, past the deep ravines of Wadi Ghul. The rugged, untamed countryside is broken only here and there by tiny settlements.

   Dinner and overnight at Jebel Shams. Lunch is optional.

5. 5
   Jour 5

   Billad Sayt, Wadi Bani Awf and Al Sawadi

   After breakfast, leave Jebel Shams and Nizwa for the mountain village of Billad Sayt. Seen from the terraced farms below, which provide for the villagers' basic needs, the village on its clifftop is a spectacular sight.

   Continue along the loop to Wadi Bani Awf.

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   Climb through the wadi up the mountain to a point where you see the gorge below, shaped like a snake.

   If you wish, trek into the gorge, where several small pools are good for bathing.

   Travel along the Batinah to the date palm grove of Nakhl, with its natural hot spring and the 350-year-old Nakhl Fort.

   From Nakhl, drive to Al Sawadi, where you spend the night. Lunch and dinner are optional.

6. 6
   Jour 6

   Beach or sea safari

   After breakfast, spend a full day at the beach.

   Or take a sea safari tour instead (optional).

7. 7
   Jour 7

   Flight to Musandam

   After breakfast, transfer to the airport for the 1-hour morning flight to Musandam.

   Spend the rest of the day at leisure at your hotel in Musandam. Lunch and dinner are optional.

8. 8
   Jour 8

   Dhow cruise in the fjords of Musandam

   Spend a full day on a traditional Omani dhow, cruising into the fjords of Musandam.

   Midway, the dhow anchors at Telegraph Island, where you can swim and snorkel in clear water. Here the British laid an underwater cable in 1864 from India to Basra, for onward communication to London.

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   Lunch and refreshments are served on board, and you may see dolphins along the way.

   Drive back to the hotel. Dinner is optional.

9. 9
   Jour 9

   Khasab, Khasab Castle and Jebel Harim

   After breakfast, set off on a full-day tour of Khasab, a small, quiet and laid-back town, and a 4WD safari to Jebel Harim.

   Take a short tour of Khasab Castle, built by the Portuguese at the beginning of the 17th century. In recent centuries it housed the Wali and his family, and it once held prisoners.

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   Restored, it is now a regional museum, with boats and houses in its courtyard that show Musandam's heritage.

   Drive into the barren interior, through mountains speckled with fossils several million years old, to Jebel Harim, the highest mountain in Musandam at 2,087 metres.

   On the way, pass the calm, peaceful Bedouin village of Sayh, on a plateau 1,100 metres above sea level.

   Continue to Rowdah village to see a pre-Islamic graveyard, and to Khawr Najid, with its view over the Indian Ocean side.

   Finally, see the natural park of acacia trees at Khalidiya, then return to your hotel in Khasab. Dinner is optional.

10. 10
    Jour 10

    Back to Muscat

    After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your flight back to Muscat.

    Lunch is optional.

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