Regarding Oman

Skeezics · September 24, 2011

Would love to know if Sur and Muscat can be seen on our own. Not excited about the shore excursions listed for our cruise. Wish to know if it is safe to walk both cities. Thanks. Barb

(Also posted on Seabourn site.)

soccerref · September 27, 2011

I can’t help you with Sur but we really loved Muscat. These are the notes that I made about our day. They may be useful to you.

Muscat:

This was our favourite stop as the town was fairly small and picturesque.

• The main souk is approximately ½mile walk from the port entrance.

• There were plenty of taxis by the entrance.

• The fish market is just by the port entrance.

• There is a pleasant promenade to walk along.

• There are many local shops on the way to the Souk.

• I thought the souk was really interesting as it contained many shops selling local produce and it is used by locals.

• My tip is to bargain. There was very little hassle.

• There are 2 very nice cafes just at the entrance to the souk. The fruit juices were delicious and very reasonably priced.

funfan · September 30, 2011

If you keep walking along the promenade you arrive at the old town.you can see the naval area with the names of ships that have visited on rocks on the hillside. Also the palace and it's gardens.

YachtieRick · October 20, 2011

Muscat is incredibly safe to walk around, I'm a British expat living here and can happily leave my car unlocked and door open. I feel safer here then I've done in the UK, Europe and America.

The souks and markets are very close to the port, within walking distance, and you can get taxi's very cheaply to the palaces and tourist sights.

willing292 · October 23, 2011

Muscat is incredibly safe to walk around, I'm a British expat living here and can happily leave my car unlocked and door open. I feel safer here then I've done in the UK, Europe and America.
The souks and markets are very close to the port, within walking distance, and you can get taxi's very cheaply to the palaces and tourist sights.

sounds great. thank you.

paul929207 · October 23, 2011

We found Muscat very safe to walk around.

Note that it is very hot there, at least on our two stops.

funfan · October 23, 2011

We were there in January and it was a nice comfortable temperature for walking around .

paul929207 · October 23, 2011

We were there in January and it was a nice comfortable temperature for walking around .

We have been there twice. Once in mid-May and once in early November. Both times it was 100+ F.

AlexDouglass · November 4, 2011

Two suggestions for Muscat:

- anyone interested in the local culture/heritage/arts should try to see the Bait Al Zubair, an excellent small museum that covers traditional dress, weapons, household goods, etc., as well as having a lovely small garden with some historic boats. There's also a restored merchant's house that shows how the Omani upper class lived in the days before oil.

- if you're only interested in beach time, two thoughts: (1) you could take a taxi about 20 minutes from the port to the Shatti al Qurum neighborhood, where there's a public beach that gets traffic from Western tourists (modest bathing suits only though - no bikinis). There's a nice small shopping center called Jawharat Al Shatti with Starbucks, a couple of other cafes, and just next door is the Intercontinental Hotel for those who'd like a cocktail. (2) you probably could arrange in advance for a day-use at the magnificent Shangri-La resort, about 20 minutes from the port, which sits by itself on a beautiful open beach and also has a range of pool choices (it has three hotels within the resort - 4 star/family, 5 star/business, and "6 star"/adults only luxury). I don't know that I'd just show up at the Shangri La, though, as their day-use policies shift seasonally. Now that I think about it, Intercon also has day use and a good pool, too...

Cruzer Two · November 4, 2011

Would love to know if Sur and Muscat can be seen on our own. Not excited about the shore excursions listed for our cruise. Wish to know if it is safe to walk both cities. Thanks. Barb
(Also posted on Seabourn site.)

We arranged a private tour of Muscat with another couple that included:Mutrah Fish Market, Mutrah Souq, Al-Mirani Fort, Al-Jalali Fort, Al-Alam Palace, Bait Al Zubair Museum, and the five-star Muscat Inter-continental Hotel. I don’t remember the name of the company, but the tour was fairly inexpensive. The fish market and souqs are within walking distance of the port, but some of the other places require transportation.

Click on http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=31214535&postcount=238 for information on viewing a video of our tour.

I think you will enjoy seeing Muscat.

Ron

Keith1010 · November 4, 2011

Muscat is very easy to see on your own. We went over to the Souk which is fairly close to the cruise ship pier and from there we negotiated for a taxi to take us precisely where we wanted to go and that included the Grand Mosque. We have been there several times and each time we visit the area looks more and more pristine.

Keith