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a r a bi a n
a dv ent u r e
Deserts, mountains, oases, beaches, romance, history and
‘murder holes.’ Oman has them all—and luxury to boot,
discovers Samantha Leese
LIFE | TRAVEL

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When we arrive at the village of Qantab in
the early morning, it’s a deep purple brimming
at the edges with the coming dawn, a silver
crescent moon and a single star pinned above
the dark sea and the shadows of limestone
cliffs. Later, on the water, the sky is brilliant
and big. The sea, reflecting its colour, is a
sparkling vivid turquoise.
We’re in a speedboat whipping north on
the lookout for bottlenose dolphins, which
are frequently spotted along with smaller
spinner dolphins in the Gulf of Oman. Extra
Divers Worldwide runs dolphin-watching
tours twice a day, as well as snorkelling and
scuba diving excursions in the area’s rich
waters. The marina is a quick shuttle ride
from the lobby of Al Husn, the most upscale
of the three hotels that make up Shangri-La’s
sweeping Barr Al Jissah Resort.
We are not disappointed. The wild
dolphins are spirited and fearless, swimming
so close to the boat that you could lean over
and touch them if only they would slow
down. When two fishermen approach our
captain hunting the same tuna the dolphins
eat, he points them in the direction of the
pod we’ve been following, and hands the men
bottles of water and snacks to sustain them
in their work. “They’re my friends,” he says
easily. “We help each other.”
In the evening, we visit the bustling port
district of Muttrah, where seagulls wheel
over the harbour, in which Sultan Qaboos’
royal yacht is docked, and residents stroll
along a picturesque promenade. At the souq,
where lanes radiate from a central dome like
the spokes of a bicycle wheel, we are sold
DIVE IN
A’Dakhliya is dominated by
a 500-kilometre mountain
range with the occasional
swimming hole
he first thing to say about Oman is that
the sky is absolutely cloudless and so
blue that it seems artificial. On a journey
that takes us from the ocean to the
mountains to the desert and back to
the capital, Muscat, through changing
landscapes and along open roads, the
sky is the constant.T masar, the headscarves worn by men, and
jars of frankincense. The resin, drawn from
the Boswellia tree, was Oman’s most valuable
commodity in ancient times, worth more than
gold. Today its bewitching scent is everywhere,
conjuring the mystique that has lured travellers
to Arabia for thousands of years.
After our two-night stay in Muscat, we set
out on a road-trip to the country’s interior, a
region known as A’Dakhliya. The heartland
of northern Oman, it is dominated by the
Hajar (“Rocky”) Mountains, which extend
500 kilometres across the territory. We’re
headed for Jabal Akhdar, the majestic “Green
Mountain” in the highest part of the range,
where Alila, the Singapore-based luxury hotel
brand, opened a jaw-dropping 86-room resort
in 2014. We expect the infrastructure, so well
maintained around the capital, to deteriorate
as we drive, but instead we encounter clear
road signs in Arabic and English, Katy Perry
on the radio, and wide, smooth stretches
of asphalt that could rival the freeways of
North America. Chauffeured cars and taxis
are available for hire, but the best advice we
received by far was to rent a reliable SUV and
drive ourselves. There’s true luxury in the
freedom it affords and we never felt unsafe.
The Sultanate of Oman, which borders
Yemen, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab
Emirates, is among the most progressive
countries in the region. That said, travellers
are advised to keep their knees and shoulders
covered out of respect for local customs—an
academic point 2,000 metres above sea level,
where night-time temperatures can drop to
below freezing in the winter months.
images:stefanoechsner;JulienCapmeil/ArtPartnerLicensing/Raven&Snow(diver)
LIFE | TRAVEL

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It’s February when we visit and luckily
we’ve just missed an especially cold snap. We
arrive at Alila Jabal Akhdar after a pleasant
three-hour journey to warm sunshine and a
refreshing breeze. We’re out on the hotel’s
main viewing deck before they can even check
us in, awed by the landscape’s magnificence—
the plunging canyons, azure sky, the arid
plateau with tufts of juniper trees and, on and
on, like mythical beasts, the shapes of other
mountains in the distance.
The eco-friendly retreat is accessible only
by four-wheel-drive vehicles (there’s a police
checkpoint at the bottom of the 50-minute
climb to turn back unsuitable cars) and the
rewards are worth every steep switchback
and unexpected donkey crossing. It’s the only
hotel this high and certainly the only luxury
property for miles—at least until Anantara’s
Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort opens later this
year. At times it’s so quiet and the eye can
travel so far that the experience of just sitting
on your balcony, and looking, and listening,
feels transformative.
The Alila’s thoughtful stone and wood
design was inspired by the nearby abandoned
village of Sirab. The trek there, which takes
you along a rocky, dry riverbed, is not the
stroll we imagined and requires good shoes,
but if you’re reasonably fit and not bothered
by the goats that inhabit the valley, it’s a
must. For those who’d prefer to relax, there’s
an open-air yoga deck, heated indoor and
outdoor pools, a wonderful spa, and plenty of
comfortable spaces in the suites and villas to
curl up and read.
To refresh yourself after an energetic hike,
the perfect elixir is a glass of pomegranate
juice at the Rose Lounge. One of the hotel’s
two F&B venues—the B being a recent
development, as the resort did not originally
serve alcohol—the lounge named for the
flower that blankets the slopes between
March and May. These are harvested to make
rosewater, a staple of Omani households used
to perfume the hands after meals.
While we’ve experienced no shortage
of Arabian flavours on our travels, specific
Omani cuisine has proved to be elusive. Our
attempts to seek it out have been met with
bemusement and suggestions that we dine
at Lebanese, Moroccan or Indian restaurants
instead. Majid, a member of Alila Jabal
Akhdar’s capable team of concierges, explains
that local food is very simple, usually fish or
meat with rice. Our dinners at Juniper, the
hotel’s restaurant, feature tagines, biryanis,
cous cous, barbequed meats and vegetable
soups, all well portioned and delicious.
We were awed by the landscape’s
magnificence—the plunging canyons,
azure sky, the arid plateau with tufts
of juniper trees
HEAVEN AND EARTH
Clockwise from top left:
A view from the seafaring
city of Sur; poolside at Alila
Jabal Akhdar; dune tracks
at Wahiba Sands; Alila Jabal
Akhdar looks out over ancient
rugged mountains; historic
Nizwa Fort
LIFE | TRAVEL

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Samantha’s itinerary in Oman can be booked
through Lightfoot Travel, a luxury tailor-
made tour company with offices in Hong Kong,
Singapore and Dubai. lightfoottravel.com
The sultan of Oman has celebrated the
ancient capital of Nizwa as “the citadel where
the glory of our country originated… which
has been the home of great leaders and the
sanctuary of intellectuals, scholars, poets and
men of literature.” A visit to Nizwa Fort is
certainly a worthwhile day trip from the Alila.
The ochre-coloured complex, built of stone
and saruj (a kind of traditional cement), gives
a fascinating insight into Omani history, as
does the Nizwa bazaar, which is at its most
vibrant during the weekly goat auctions on
Friday mornings.
There are few other tourists when we
arrive at midday and we often feel we have
the labyrinthine heritage site to ourselves.
The castle, which was constructed in the 9th
century and expanded in the 17th, houses a
small, informative museum. As well as the
displays, fascinating stories are to be found
in its walls and floors, in the “murder holes”,
for example, through which boiling date juice
(the fruit grows abundantly in Oman) would
be poured on invaders.
The sky expands as we leave the mountains
for Wahiba Sands, the land of the Bedouin.
Here is the Arabian desert of our imagination,
where towering dunes of fine red sand
undulate beneath a sheet of striking blue.
Camels appear as we drive along the unpaved
road to Desert Nights Camp, the scene
unfolding like a picture book come to life. The
creatures are larger and more graceful, less
goofy, than we’d expected.
The camp is comfortable rather than
opulent and the service is good. A schedule
of activities, including quad biking and camel
rides, is offered at check-in, where we are
welcomed with dates and Omani cardamom-
Petals of roses from the Jebel
Akhdar region are collected over
a few weeks every spring and
are used to produce Oman’s
famous rose water.
Oudh, a fragrant ebony-coloured
resin, is prized for its scent. Raw
or perfume-soaked oudh chips
used in incense burn with a
sweet, loamy smell.
SCENTS OF OMAN
The sultanate is a source not only of the world’s finest frankincense,
but also perfumed oils, hand-blended incense and other aromatics
The world’s most sought-after
frankincense comes from Oman.
The locals burn it to fumigate
and perfume their homes and to
ritually purify public spaces.
spiced coffee. Sure enough, we discover this is
not a place for chilling out—something about
the landscape makes you feel restless.
We go on a camel safari at sunset, riding out
with a guide who leads his animals on foot. The
camels are sweet-natured, accustomed to their
loads, and the experience is peaceful. When
the colour of the sky shifts towards indigo, we
dismount and climb barefoot to the ridge of a
dune to watch the full glowing circle of the sun
sink below the horizon.
The coastal road back to Muscat takes us
through the historic seafaring city of Sur. On
the map we use to supplement the car’s GPS,
little blue capillaries mark the nearby riverbed
oases. These are sites of mesmerising natural
beauty, which can be found throughout the
country, and are a point of pride for Omanis.
At the mouth of Wadi Shab, a small sum gets
us across the water to the opening of a sheer
limestone gorge, the sight of which is so
tremendous we are struck still by it.
To experience Oman at its most enchanting,
you’ll need an interest in nature and at least a
modest sense of adventure, and if you possess
those, the country should be at the top of your
bucket list.
On the last day of our trip, the clouds
finally come, cirrus streaks lined with gold
from the setting sun. The sky dims to violet,
the sea a shimmering midnight blue. We
watch from the beach in Qantab where our
travels started and are now ending.
MAN’s BEST FRIEND
A Bedouin guide tends
his camels during a
sunset safari at Desert
Nights Camp
Amouage, Oman’s
prestigious and only
international fragrance
house, is among the world’s
most expensive brands.
LIFE | TRAVEL