The Most Underrated Places to Visit in Oman

Starting at Al Hajar Mountains, but this time we will not talk about Jebel Al Akhdar or Jebel Shams, but a small unique village in the famous mountain area. The Wakan Village is a tiny mountain village located around 2,000 km (1242.7 miles) above the sea level. It is part of South Al Batinah Governorate in northern Oman. It is surrounded by beautiful terraced gardens and has marvelous views over several valleys and mountains. Through its mountains and rocky formations, the Wakan Village offers lots of great hiking tracks.

The story of the city of Uber is surrounded by mysteries and legends. However, the most common story is that Ubar was a rich city that was famous for its profitable frankincense trade. Nonetheless, thousands of years ago, a huge sandstorm buried the whole city. Ever since, lots of expeditions and explorers have been visiting the Dhofar region in southern Oman, to find the lost city. Hidden in the deep sands of Al Rub’ Al Khali desert, which is the world’s largest sand desert, the city of Ubar has unique architecture and historical ruins. The story of what happened to the city was told in the Holy book of Qur’an.

Masirah Island is the largest island in Oman. It is located in the eastern coast of Oman, and consists of several villages, more importantly; Ras Al Hilf Village, which has a group of abandoned ships that are worth watching. The island is full of interesting geographical natural spots like: Jabal Madrub, which is a 256 m (0.16 miles), Ras Abu Rasas and Jabal Suwayr, which is also known as Jabal Al Hilm. All of which might not be significant in size, but they have unique rocky formations.

Musandam is the northern governorate in Oman. It is kind of separated from the rest of Oman by a small part of UAE. Musandam is surrounded by two gulfs from three directions; the Arabian Gulf and Oman Gulf. Its coastline is famous for its unique khors, which means fjord-like inlets in Arabic. Musandam waters are home for dolphins and other special sea creatures.

Bilad Says is a rocky mountain village located in the northeastern side of Al Hajar Mountain area. Visitors have to use 4-wheel cars to enter the village, which is located near Jebel Shams, the highest peak of Oman. The village is surrounded by Wadi Al Sahtan, Wadi Bani Awf and Al Hamra. It also lies in the heart of several mountains and lots of palm trees, while a falaj runs through it carrying water around the village.

Tanuf is a small village located almost in the middle of two famous cities in Al Dakhliya Governorate: Nizwa and Bahla. It is known to be the village where lots of the brands of Omani bottles water come from, which include; Tanuf, Salsabel and Jabal Al Akhdar. Beside its pure water, Tanuf has some historical ruins of its ancient lost city, that was abandoned during the famous wars of Jabal Al Akhdar in 1950. A walk through Tanuf is a unique walk between history, architectural beauty and nature.