Holiday Destinations - Oman

The Sultanate of Oman  is in the Middle East, on the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders the United Arab Emirates in the northwest, Saudi Arabia in the west, and Yemen in the southwest. Oman has two exclaves separated from it by the United Arab Emirates, the Musandam Peninsula and Madha. 
Until Sultan Qaboos bin Said exiled the previous Sultan in 1970, Oman was an under-developed nation, and almost completely closed to visitors. Since that time, education, public works and tourism have taken off throughout the country. 
Omanis are friendly people and are very helpful to tourists. In turn, tourists should respect the ways and traditions of the Omani people. 
Omanis are proud of both their country's rapid progress and their heritage as one of the great sea-faring nations. Excellent schools and hospitals, good governance, and on-going infrastructure improvement are all important characteristics of this once introverted and closed nation. 
The oldest known human settlement in Oman dates to the Stone Age. 
Sumerian tablets refer to a country called Magan, a name thought to refer to Oman’s ancient copper mines. The present-day name of the country is believed to originate from the Arab tribes who migrated to its territory from the Uman region of Yemen. Many tribes settled in Oman making a living by fishing, herding or stock breeding and some present day Omani families are able to trace their ancestral roots to other parts of Arabia. 
From the 6th century BC to the arrival of Islam in the 7th century AD, Oman was controlled and/or influenced by three Persian dynasties, the Achaemenids, Parthians and Sassanids. By about 250 B.C. the Parthian dynasty brought the Persian Gulf under their control and extended their influence as far as Oman and established garrisons in Oman. In the third century A.D. the Sasanids succeeded the Parthians and held the area until the rise of Islam four 
The climate generally is very hot, with temperatures reaching 54 °C (129.2 °F) in the hot season, from May to September. 
Annual rainfall in Muscat averages 100 mm (3.9 in), falling mostly in January. Dhofar is subject to the southwest monsoon, and rainfall up to 640 mm (25.2 in) has been recorded in the rainy season from late June to October. 
While the mountain areas receive more plentiful rainfall, some parts of the coast, particularly near the island of Masirah, sometimes receive no rain at all within the course of a year.  
Map of Oman with regions colour coded Northern Oman (Muscat, Bahla, Buraimi, Hajar Mountains, Madha, Matrah, Musandam Peninsula, Sohar)
the capital city, fertile Al-Batinah coast, majestic Hajar Mountains and the Musandam Peninsula  Central Coastal Oman (Ibra, Masirah Island, Sur, Wahiba Sands)
awe-inspiring dunes, old forts and coastal scenery fringing the Indian Ocean  
Zufar (Dhofar) (Salalah)
lush coastal lowlands and mountains bordering Yemen  
Empty Quarter 
huge desert wilderness including much of the largely undefined border area with Saudi Arabia.

Muscat is the capital of Oman and the country's largest city.
The city referred to as "Muscat" is in fact three smaller towns which have grown together over time. They are:
Muscat - often referred to as the "walled city", Muscat proper is the site of the royal palaces.
Matrah (Matruh) - originally a fishing village, and home to the maze-like Matrah Souq.
Ruwi - generally considered the commercial and diplomatic centre of the city.
This tripartite division will sometimes cause the visitor an inconvenience, as distances between sites (and accommodation) can be very long.
As an alternative to the main CBD area that is considered as these three areas there is plently of places to go and things to see along the main highway that heads North East out of these areas. This main road, The Sultan Qaboos Highway, goes past many areas on its way out to the Airport and further still to Seeb, Sohar and eventually the northern most tip of Oman.
Heading along this road you pass the districts of Qurum, Madinat Al Sultan Qaboos, Al Khuwair, Bausher, Al-Hail and Seeb. Each one has a range of sights to see and places to stay.
There is also a very long beach road from Qurum to Seeb, some 50km. Situated along this are some of the large international hotel chains but more importantly you discover the true beauty of the Oman coast-line. Km's of beaches, fisherman with drag nets and open space to walk for hours.