The Wildest Side of Oman in the Musandam Peninsula

Oman’s Musandam Peninsula is a wild and fascinating place with the look of the last frontier left to explore or a forbidden planet you inadvertently stumbled upon. This remote patch of land at the northernmost tip of the country is Arabia’s least known corner though it overlooks the world’s busiest and most strategic waterways: the Strait of Hormuz, where a large percentage of the world’s crude oil trade passes through.

The rugged landscape is only sparsely populated by the semi-nomadic mountain tribes and consists mainly of steep rocks jutting from the mainland towards Iran, dropping dramatically into the blue waters. It’s a stunning scenery you’ll be glad you made the trek for (either by flying there or driving the few hours from Dubai) and seems perfectly ripe for a few days of adventures or the setting of the next Bond’s crazy chase.

It is the Gulf as you’ve never seen it before, sleepy and inhospitable, and it even lacked roads until just over a decade ago. And that’s why you should visit, for that totally surreal feeling and the unsurprisingly slow pace of life here. Even the region’s capital, Khasab, has not much going on so your best option is to check in at the only ‘upmarket’ hotel in town, Atana Khasab (perched on a rock face with stunning views of the shoreline), and have them arrange your stay and your tours.

Pool at Atana Khasab

Arabic breakfast at Atana Khasab

Visiting somnolent Khasab can be done in half a day as there’s little to see in its dusty streets apart from taking a stroll along the pretty harbour…

…and visiting its restored fort, Khasab Castle.

The impressive square has towers at each corner and an old round tower in the courtyard which is all that remains of the original fort built in the 17th-century by the Portuguese.

The fort now doubles as a museum and has exhibits throughout giving a good historical insight into the importance of the Musandam region and the local ways of living.

A traditional elevated barasti (palm thatch) summer house made of palm fronds shows how simple cooling techniques have been applied to deal with the scorching summer heat. These houses were occupied by mountain dwellers who came to Khasab in the summer to fish and harvest dates.

Next to it is a reconstructed Bait al Qufl or ‘House of the Lock’. Built of heavy stones and partially below ground, it is unique to the region and was a mean of safeguarding vital supplies while the family was away during the summer months, involving a highly complex locking device.

You can also find on the ground floor replicas of typical rooms as they were used traditionally, such as the kitchen.

Sign for the restrooms

You can easily access the upper level of the castle to get a good view of the surrounding scenery from any of the four corner towers.

Oman flag

You’ll also find room tableaus featuring traditional costumes and life scenes – here looking at the wedding room.

When it’s time for lunch, the city has a good number of cheap and cheerful restaurants from Iranian (excellent food, it’s probably as close to the country as you’ll get so make the most of it!) to local seafood for which I can highly recommend Al Shamaliah Grill Restaurant.

Local grilled fish

Squid and eggplant

Rice

Around Khasab, there’s the lush natural park of Birkat al-Khaldiyah with its many acacia trees, very popular with the locals who come and picnic under their shade.

Taking the coastal road north, the next bay after Khasab is home to the old ruinous village of Qadah where it seems like the goats outnumber the humans…

Cave houses can be seen right off the road, though they’re no longer inhabited these days.

The main attraction if you continue on this road are the pre-historic cave paintings of Wadi Tawi. Large rocks and pieces from the cave walls have fallen over the years from the top of the mountains to the side of the road so you can walk around and study the petroglyphs featuring camels, sheep and hunters carved into the rocks.

After the quick city and surroundings tour, it’s time to get to the interesting stuff and Musandam is known for two things really: its magnificent fjords and mountains. Both can be easily explored with one of the numerous local tour companies and a half day mountain safari is a splendid way to spend the afternoon. Driving away from Khasab, you’ll soon get to the newish road leading all the way up the Hajar mountain range, a 4×4 being necessary as the military built road is tricky to drive.

The vertiginous climb is stunning and within minutes you’re staring at one of the most isolated and harsh environment you’ve likely seen. You realize just how resourceful and hardy the people living in the few settlements you’ll come across have to be to survive, especially at these extraordinary heights.

If you can peel your eyes away from the road, your guide will surely point you to a few unique ‘illusions’ on the rocks, such as this donkey head which was massive…can you see it?

Another rock formation is called the ‘priest’…

After climbing further up. an unusual sight will materialize, that of the Sayh Plateau, a surprisingly fertile plain about 2km long with farmed fields of almonds, mangoes, and date palms.

At 2,087m you will have reached Jebel Harim (left side of the photo above) – the ‘Mountain of Women’- and highest peak in Musandam.

Many of the rocks up here are studded with superbly preserved fossils.

Enjoy the steep descent and the views of the gorges before returning to Khasab for a sunset that transforms the stark cliffs into a warm spectacle of reds and rust.

Next day is for the must-do activity here – a dhow cruise along the fjords. I think this was by far my favorite moment of the whole trip and if you can, do the whole day as opposed to the half-day cruise, you won’t regret it. Leaving from Khasab harbour, the traditional wooden dhows are incredibly comfortable and equipped with snorkeling equipment as well as a full lunch and refreshments for the day.

I’ve honestly never felt so relaxed on a boat than lounging on these carpets and plump cushions, sipping tea and snapping photos of the amazing scenery.

Any nature lover and pretty much everyone else too will be moved by the landscape which has given this part of Oman the nickname of ‘The Norway of Arabia’.

Heading out of the harbour, you’ll meet plenty of birds and local fishing boats, waiting for their daily catch and seeming to really enjoy the day at large.

The boat will then enter the Khor Ash-Sham, a giant fjord where the water is calm and sheltered and the familiar mountains rise dramatically from the sea.

You have a very good chance of spotting dolphins as soon as you enter the fjord as they like the calm water and are also attracted by the sound and wake of the engine, swimming along the boat for a long while.

You’ll get plenty of opportunities to snap photos, hoping to catch them as they gracefully leap out of the water.

You will also spot fishing villages along the route which are only accessible by boat.

Just like high up in the mountains, your guide will surely point a few special formations on the wind swept rocks, such as this cool looking turtle jutting out as if ready to get into the water…see her?

You’ll eventually reach the famous Telegraph Island where the British laid the first telegraph cable in 1864 (it ran from India to Iraq and the island was manned for some 5 years).

This is a great spot to enjoy the rich and colourful underwater world Musandam is known for, the fjord teeming with varied marine life. A few dhows will surely be anchored already around the island to let their passengers jump and enjoy the crystal clear water.

We dove right in and marveled at the clean and super refreshing water, a school of fish soon encircling us, hoping for some food?

After a filling lunch and one more swim in the pristine fjord it’s time to get back, discovering a few more tucked away white villages and never tiring of the majestic mountains, all carved out and changing shapes and colors with the sun and clouds.

This is to me the real definition of ‘off the beaten path’ travel and after a few days here I bet you’ll feel just as we did – peaceful, refueled, and ever more in love with nature as we were before. It’s incredibly eye opening after out crazy city lives to discover a place like this where time has an entirely different meaning, and I’m promising myself to actively find more places like Musandam, I need them in my life!