Practical Information for visiting Oman

Getting in. Muscat International is the main airport, with Salalah served directly and seasonally from the Gulf and Europe. Musandam is reached by air, by ferry, or overland through the UAE.

Driving is how you see Oman. Roads are excellent, signage is bilingual, fuel is cheap, and distances are long. A four-wheel-drive is genuinely necessary for the mountain tracks, the Wahiba Sands and many wadi approaches — and hire companies void insurance for off-road use in a two-wheel-drive.

Public transport exists but is limited: Mwasalat runs intercity coaches between the main towns, and shared taxis fill gaps. Neither reaches the places most visitors want.

Camping is legal on most unfenced land, which combines with a hire car to make Oman one of the best countries in the region for an independent road trip.

In Muscat, taxis are unmetered — agree the fare — and ride-hailing apps operate. The city is strung out along the coast, so walking between districts is impractical.

The currency is the Omani rial (OMR), one of the highest-valued currencies in the world at around 2.6 US dollars to the rial. It divides into 1,000 baisa, so prices carry three decimal places — a coffee at 1.500 is one and a half rials, not fifteen hundred of anything.

Cards are accepted in hotels, malls, supermarkets and larger restaurants. Cash is needed in souqs, small towns, at wadi car parks and for taxis.

ATMs are widespread in towns and absent in the mountains and the sands; draw before heading out.

Bargaining is expected in the souqs and done gently.

Tipping is appreciated rather than obligatory: rounding up, or ten per cent where no service charge is added. Guides and drivers on multi-day trips should be tipped properly.

Coverage for mobile networks is good along the coast, the main roads and in the towns, from Omantel and Ooredoo, with 4G and 5G in the cities. It disappears in the mountains, the deeper wadis, the Empty Quarter and much of the interior — which matters if you are driving alone.

Tourist SIMs are cheap and sold at the airport with a passport.

Wi-Fi is standard in hotels and cafes. Note that some VoIP calling has at times been restricted, as elsewhere in the Gulf.

Download offline maps before leaving Muscat. Oman is a country where people drive into terrain with no signal routinely, and telling someone your route before you go is the local habit for good reason.

Arabic is the official language, and the local dialect is Gulf Arabic with distinctive Omani features. Swahili is spoken in families who returned from Zanzibar, and several small south Arabian languages — Mehri, Jibbali and others, unwritten and unrelated to Arabic — survive in Dhofar. Baluchi and Urdu are widely heard.

English is widely spoken in Muscat, in hotels, shops and government offices, and by younger Omanis everywhere. Road signs and official information are bilingual, and a visitor rarely has difficulty.

A few Arabic words are warmly received: as-salamu alaykum as a greeting, shukran for thank you, min fadlak for please, and inshallah, which is used constantly.

Omanis greet at length — a sequence of enquiries after health and family — and cutting it short to get to business is read as brusque.

Oman is one of the safest countries in the world for visitors, with very low crime and a reputation for courtesy that holds up. The hazards here are entirely environmental.

• Flash floods are the leading cause of death for visitors and residents alike. Wadis fill within minutes from rain falling kilometres away in the mountains. Never camp in a wadi bed, never drive through running water, and check the forecast for the whole catchment.
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• Heat between May and September is genuinely dangerous inland. Hiking in summer is not sensible.
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• Driving off-road. Soft sand, mountain tracks with no barriers, and long stretches with no phone signal. Travel in two vehicles in the sands if you can, carry water well beyond what you expect to need, and tell someone your route.
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• The sea. Currents on the exposed Arabian Sea coast are strong and beaches are unpatrolled.
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• Drones are prohibited without a permit and are confiscated at the airport.
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• Drugs carry severe penalties, including for trace amounts.

Healthcare is good, and Oman’s public health system is well regarded regionally. Private hospitals in Muscat are modern and used to foreign patients. Visitors pay privately; medical insurance is a condition of entry and must be valid for Oman.

Vaccinations: routine cover plus hepatitis A and typhoid for longer stays. There is no malaria in most of the country.

Heat and dehydration are by far the most likely problem. In summer, and on any mountain walk, you lose fluid faster than you notice in this dry air. Carry several litres per person and start early.

Wadi swimming. The water is fresh and generally clean, but do not put your head under in still pools, and be aware that these are drinking sources downstream.

Sun. The UV index is extreme most of the year.

Pharmacies are widespread and well stocked. Tap water in Muscat is desalinated and safe; bottled is standard elsewhere.

Dress conservatively. Shoulders and knees covered for both men and women, everywhere except hotel pools and private beaches. Oman is noticeably more conservative than the UAE, and swimwear in a wadi is not appropriate — swim in shorts and a T-shirt.

Mosques. Only the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque in Muscat admits non-Muslims, in the mornings, with women covering hair, arms and legs.

Alcohol is legal for non-Muslims in licensed hotels and restaurants only. Drinking in public or being drunk in public is an offence, and the driving limit is zero.

Ramadan. No eating, drinking or smoking in public during daylight, visitors included.

Greet properly and use the right hand for giving, receiving and eating. Accept the coffee and dates.

Photography. Ask before photographing people, especially women, and never photograph military or government sites. Drones need a permit.

Public affection is not acceptable, and criticising the sultan or the government is an offence.

Emergency numbers: 9999 reaches police, ambulance and fire nationally, with English-speaking operators.

Medical. The Royal Hospital and Khoula in Muscat are the main public facilities; private hospitals including Muscat Private Hospital treat foreign patients and expect payment or an insurance guarantee. Salalah and Sohar have regional hospitals; the interior has health centres only.

In the mountains and the desert, the Royal Oman Police handle search and rescue, including by helicopter. Coverage gaps mean you should leave a route plan with someone who will notice if you do not return.

Flash flood warnings are issued by the meteorology service and carried on local radio and social media. Take them seriously; roads close and people die every year ignoring them.

Keep an offline copy of your passport and insurance. Most embassies are in Muscat’s diplomatic quarter at Al Khuwair.