Capital: Muscat

Government: Monarchy with a provisional legislature (the Majlis Ash Shura)

Head of State: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said

Major industries: Oil, natural gas, agriculture, and fishing

Ruling body: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said is Head of State and rules by decree. He is assisted by a cabinet of ministers, Diwan of the Royal Court (the central body of bureaucratic affairs), and the Majlis Ash Shura, a body of representatives elected by the populace.

Population: Approximately 2 million. Around 1.5 million are Omani nationals. The remaining are expatriates from India, Asia, other Arab countries, Europe and USA.

Area: The Sultanate encompasses an area of 300,000 sq kms.

Airport: Seeb international airport, 40 km from Muscat city centre.

Seeb International Airport, located in Muscat, serves many international airlines such as British Airways, KLM, Kuwait Airways, Swiss Air and Emirates. The national carrier is Oman Air, which flies to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), India, Pakistan, Qatar, Egypt, and Sri Lanka as well as performing domestic flights to Salalah, Masirah Island and Musandam.

Climate: The country's climate is predominantly arid and varies slightly from one region to another. In the coastal areas, the weather is hot and humid during the summer months, while it is dry elsewhere in the interior. Milder weather dominates the mountains and Dhofar region all the year round. Winter temperatures can be as low as 15°Celsius and summer temperatures can be as high as 48° Celsius in Muscat and as high as 54° in the desert.

Dhofar, located in the southernv region of the country however, enjoys a regular monsoon between June and October, every year.

Average Temperature in Oman (in Degree Celsius)

	Summer		Winter
	Day	Night	Day	Night
Muscat	43 C	32 C	25 C	17 C
Salalah	30 C	28 C	28 C	20 C

Best Time to visit : The best time of the year to visit Oman is between October and April, when the weather is pleasantly warm in the day and cool in the evening. Temperature averages at 25-35 degrees centigrade during the day and dips to 17-19 degrees centigrade at night.

Religion: Islam, predominantly Ibadhi sect.

Language: Official language is Arabic. Other languages spoken include Urdu, Swahili and Baluchi. English is widely spoken and along with Arabic is the common business language. Most Hotel staff speak German and French as well.

Culture: Like all the Arab countries, Arab Islamic Culture dominates the life style in the Sultanate. However, being an international market, people of various other nationalities are also present.

National Dress: Men - dishdasha (robe),Kimah (cap),mussar (turban)

Women - jallabia (dress), sirwall (trousers), thobe (overdress cloak, lahaf (head shawl), abaya (black cloak). Women generally leave their face and hands exposed, while in the desert, women of the Bedouin tribes wear a mask, called a "birqa."

 

 

 

 

Working Hours:

Ministries and government establishments - 7:30 am to 2:30 pm (Sat-Wed, week-end is Thursday and Friday)

Private sector companies - 8:00am to 1:00pm; 4:00pm to 7:00pm (Saturday-Wednesday) 8:00am to 1:00pm on Thursdays.

Markets: 8:00am to 1:00pm, 4:00pm to 9:00pm.

Banks: 8:00 am to 12 noon.

Timings differ during Ramadân.
Ramadân, the holy month of fasting, is the ninth month on the Arabic calendar which is a lunar calendar. Every year Ramadân shifts back about ten days on the western solar calendar. In the year 2001 Ramadân will begin in the third week of November. Restaurants and other eateries are closed during daylight hours during the Holy Ramadân period.

Shopping hours:
Shopping establishments are open from 9am to 1 pm and 4pm to 9 pm. Department stores, supermarkets and shopping complexes are open throughout the day during Ramadân from 9am to 10 pm, with a short lunch break all through the week, except Fridays. These timings could vary with different shops.

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Muscat

Muscat, the capital city of Oman lies sparkling white, topped with golden minarets in the middle of a maze of brown pleated mountains reaching down to the Arabian Sea. Described as "Arabia's jewel”, this city is a blend of the old and the new. Muscat is green as green can be, and defies being classified as part of a desert country. The roads are lined with well-manicured green lawns and trees. During winter this is interspersed with a profusion of multicoloured flowers. The city has steadfastly retained its old-world character. Old Muscat has a quaint charm about it with many forts, castles, mosques and towers doting the landscape. Of particular note are Jalali and Mirani forts flanking Al Alam Palace. The Corniche, with its promenade and souqs (markets) is one of the highlights of the city. The old souq of Muttrah is an ideal spot for tourists to buy keepsakes and treasures. Greater Muscat boasts high-rise business properties (but not too high), world-class highways, upscale suburbs rooted in traditional Islamic architecture, elegant mosques, large green parks, archaeological sites, museums and world-class hotels.

It is no wonder that Muscat is increasingly becoming an attractive tourist destination among the world's travel going public.

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Salalah

Distance from Muscat - 1030 km
Average drive time - 12 hours by road, (1 hour by flight)
How to get there - By buses / coaches belonging to the Oman National tourist Corporation (ONTC). Cars can be hired from Car rental agencies. Oman Air operates regular flights from Muscat to Salalah

Nestled in the southern region of Oman, Salalah has the benifit of the annual Indian monsoon: locally known as the Khareef. This monsoon, which extends from early June to mid September, transforms the countryside into a veritable garden with tumbling waterfalls and meandering streams. The Khareef season is a good time to visit Salalah. In July and August the government plays host for the annual Khareef Festival, a cultural highlight of the season.

Salalah is steeped in myths and legends that date back to biblical times. In the Jebel Qara can be found the tomb of the Prophet Ayoub, better known as Job of the Old Testament. In Khawr Rhori lie the ruins of the palace reputed to be that of the Queen of Sheba. In the surrounding countryside on the flanks of the jebels grows the Boswellia sacra better known for the sap it produces: Frankincense. Frankincense, of course, is best known to Christians as one of the gifts of the Magi in Nativity story. In all probability the Frankincense that was a gift to the baby Jesus came from Oman as the Boswellia sacra tree grows no where else.

For most of the year, the unspoiled beaches of Salalah are ideal for scuba diving, canoeing, sailing, jet skiing and diving. The marshy khawrs along the coast line are sanctuaries to a broad variety of migrating birds turning the region into a bird watchers paradise. But during the summer Salalah is easily Oman's coolest destination to visit during the Khareef with its crisp unpolluted air, cool misty clime, high rolling seas and leafy ambiance.

Less than half an hour's drive from Salalah is Ain Razat, a picnic spot with springs, hills, gardens and streams. Nearby is the equally resplendent Ain Sahanawt. Seventy kilo- meters east of Salalah lies Mirbat, famous for Bin Ali's tomb (Bin Ali was revered in the early days of Islam as a sage and holy man.). Taqah, 36kms from Salalah is a picturesque, quaint village. The fort at Taqah goes back several hundred years and is well stocked with authentic decorations and appointments.

Rising high above the coast is the Jebel Samhan plateau, the highest point in Dhofar at 1800 meters. Here you can find the hanging valley of Wadi Dirbat which is impressive in full flood. Further into the jebels is Tawi Attir (the hole of the birds), a natural sink hole over 100 metres wide and 250 metres deep. Nestled in a hidden valley is the Baobab Forest with huge bulbous trees, one tree over 2000 years old and 30 feet in diameter at its base.

To the west of Salalah are many stretches of beautiful beaches. One of the most popular of these is Mughsayl where you can find unusual blow holes in the rocky shelf close to the shore. These holes display dramatic bursts of water and foam sometimes reaching 50 feet in the air. Further to the west close to the Yemen border lies the town of Rakhyut and is a pleasant spot for picnic and swim in the ocean.

To the north of Salalah is the region known as the Nejd. This is a barren desolate area that is actually the southern fringe of the R'ub Al Khali. Here you find sweeping sand dunes and parched wadis. Lying 175 km north of Salalah is the remote village of Shisr. Here in the early nineties, with the help of satellite imagery from the space shuttle, explorers found what they believe to be the lost city of Ubar. Called by T. E. Lawrance (of Arabia) as the "Atlantis of the sands", Ubar was once considered to be the trading centre for frankincense before it was buried in the rising dunes.

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