Self Drive Car Tours in Oman | Explore at Your Own Pace

Day 1

Muscat City Tour 

The group will all meet at 0900 hrs at the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque. After visiting the awe-inspiring grand mosque, we will visit – The Royal Opera House – The Bait Al Zubair Museum – The National Museum – The Sultan’s Palace Al Alam – Al Jalali Fort & Al-Mirani Fort and lastly, the Souq in Mutrah.

Note, Museum entrance fees are not included.

Muscat – Jabrin  – Bahla – Jebel Shams – Misfah Al Abriyeen 

Day 3

Misfat – Nizwa – Birkat Al Mawz – Jebel Akhdar

Our first stop today will be Nizwa which used to be the capital of Oman. We will visit the fort with its enormous circular tower and the Falaj Daris which is a world Heritage UNESCO site. It is the largest Falaj (irrigation) system in Oman. We will visit the bustling Nizwa souq with an array of handicrafts, including silver Khanjars.

We will then drive a short distance to Birkat Al Mouz. This quaint village has some interesting old mud buildings and beautiful plantations. Next we drive up the winding road to Jebel Akhdar the green mountain.

Jebel Akhdar is more “touristy” than Jebel Shams and with a number of 5-star hotels. But there are still some nice places to camp and to explore. The landscape up here is very different to anywhere else in Oman, driving past ancient old Olive trees, you could even think you were in Greece now – where is that Taverna?

There is a choice of hotels and Guest houses and some impressive places to Camp. If it is very cold, we will drive back down the mountain to camp in Wadi Al Muaydin. If we camp here and some stay in hotels, we will all meet up in the morning at Birkat al Mouz. But we must be early, Day 4 is a long day.

Day 4

Jebel Akhdar – Oman through the ages Museum – Adam – Rock formations (Yardangs) – Oryx Reserve

We must set off down the Jebel (mountain) early as we have a long drive today. We will first stop at the Museum called Oman Across Ages Museum. It traces the story of Oman from the first settlers of prehistory to the present,

Next we visit Adam which I personally believe is more interesting than Nizwa. It was once home to the Imam Ahmed bin Said Busaidi (1744-1783) the founder of the Al Busaidi dynasty and the ancestor of the current ruler of Oman There are some interesting old traditional Omani mud brick buildings. One of the most fascinating things to see is the old the sun clock, which is still used today to equitably distribute water from the Falaj system to each farmer. A series of vertical poles, each representing a specific farmer, are positioned on the ground. As the sun moves, the shifting shadows indicate the exact time water from the Falaj should be directed to which farmer.

From Adam, we drive to Al Ghabah and here we drive off-road to see some strange rock formations known as Yardangs. These formations have been carved out by wind blown sand and dust over 50 million years.

After a long drive, we reach the Arabian Oryx reserve. The magnificent Arabian Oryx have splendid straight, ringed horns as long as 68 centimetres. They are highly adapted to the harsh desert environment, where temperatures can reach 50ºC even in the shade during summer.

We then Drive to Duqm where there are several Hotels, or we camp on the beach.

Day 5

Duqm – Sugar Dunes  

Today it is a short drive from Duqm to the Sugar Dunes. We are often asked what is our favourite place to camp in Oman. That is indeed a tough question as there are just so many fantastic camping spots. But if pushed, we would have to say the Sugar dunes.

The area is simply stunning, with sparkling white sand dunes coming right down to sea. After a long drive yesterday, this is a fabulous place to chill out and relax. The sand is very soft here, so it is easy to get stuck, but our guide will have everything required including Tyre deflater sand boards towing ropes and a compressor.

For those wishing to stay in a Hotel, it is a one-hour drive back to Duqm. We will meet in Shannah Port. Do not be late we have to get the 1100 hrs Ferry to Masirah Island.

Day 6

Sugar Dunes – Masirah Island 

From the Sugar dunes we drive along the beach to Kaluf and then along the coast to the port of Shannah to catch the 1100 hrs ferry across to Masirah Island.

If anyone is staying in Hotels in Duqm we meet them in Shannah.

After landing at Hilf on the Island we will drive around the Island to admire the incredible beauty of the place with numerous sparkling white sand beaches.

In the evening, we might be lucky to see some turtles in their natural habitat.

Day 7

Masirah Island 

Today we can choose to do nothing but chill or go to the Masirah beach camp  for water sports: water-skiing, kite boarding, fishing, windsurfing, canoeing, snorkeling etc or we can trek up Jebel Humr the highest point of Masirah. At 274 m high there are some magnificent views of the island  

One thing we must do on Masirah is to check out the Sea food restaurants and delicious Lobster 

Day 8

Masirah Island – Shannah – Desert Crossing South to North

Today we take the local Ferry from Hilf to Shannah. The Ferry leaves when it is full. We will try to get on the Ferry about 0800 hrs. From Shannah, it is about a 45 minutes drive up the coast to Qihad. We now prepare to enter the desert. We first let air out of our tyres. Bringing the pressure down to around 1.2 Bar, this allows the tyres to get better traction in the sand. We then climb the high dunes that go right the way down to the sea. We will stop at the top of these dunes to admire the view behind us. Wow, what a view across the dunes to the Indian Ocean below.

We will then drive northward across the desert, with frequent stops for photos. If anyone has opted to stay at the 1000 Nights camp, we will go there first before we set up a wild camp nearby. We will be far enough away
from any light pollution to ensure we have a great view of the sky at night.

Day 9

Wasdi Bani Khalid  – Sur – Wadi Shab

From the Wahiba sands, we will drive to Wadi Bani Khalid. This is one of Oman’s most popular and scenic spots. A great place to swim and wash off any desert sand. So bring a towel and swimming gear, but please swim in shorts and a T-shirt.

After lunch, we will drive to Sur where we will visit the Dhow ship building yard. It is fascinating to see these uniquely talented carpenters at work. There are small model dhows that can be purchased.

From Sur, we drive along the coast to Tiwi and Wadi Shab. Please note that to really enjoy Wadi Shab we must swim paddle and wade through water to get to the cave. So anything that is not waterproof such as cameras, phones, money etc. must stay in the car. It is a good idea to have a good quality Dry bag. The rocks can be very slippery, so make sure you have some suitable shoes which you can also wear when swimming. From Wadi Shab it is a short drive to the white sandy beach at Fins where we will camp.

Day 10 Option 1

Wadi Arbeieen – Wadi Dayqah – Muscat 

From Fins, we drive along the coast to Dibba where we turn off the main road to drive along Wadi Dibba to Wadi Arbeieen. At the end of the road there is a large rock pool with a waterfall. It is fun to jump in and swim up against the flow of the waterfall. After a refreshing swim we drive to Wadi Dayqah along the way we drive through a geological wonderland with all colours and shapes of rocks imaginable.

In 2012 a very impressive Dam was built at Wadi Dayqah. So there is now a beautiful reservoir surrounded by mountains. It is a very nice place to stop for lunch, and it is possible to hire Kayaks and Paddle boards. After lunch, we drive back to Muscat where sadly the tour ends.

Day 10 Option 2

Yacht Cruise 

 If the weather is OK and there are at least 10 passengers  this is a fabulous option.

We will drive along the coast from Tiwi  past Quriyat and through the Hajar mountains via Wadi Lahlu to As Sifah where we will board a 45 foot Bayliner “Shamsa”

The cruise will be from about 1000 hrs to 1500 hrs. It is about 1 hour from the pontoon in Sifah to the sheltered waters of Bandar Kyran where we can snorkel over some beautiful Coral Reefs.

At the end of a relaxing day we drive back to Muscat where sadly the Tour ends.   

Day 1 Muscat : Nomad Guest House, Centara, Crown Plaza Qurum

Day 2 Misfah :  Al Misfah Hospitality Inn, The Wadi Inn

Day 3 Jebel Akhdar : Jebel Akdar Grand Hotel,  Many other depending on budget

Day 4 & 5 Duqm : Crown Plaza, Season Inn Hotel Apartment

Day 6 & 7 Masirah : Masirah Beach Camp, Al Jood Hotel Apartment 

Day 8 Wahiba Sands : 1000 Nights Camp

Day 9 Tiwi : Tiwi Sunrise Resort