Exploring Oman › Oman itineraries › The 5-Day Grand Tour
Photo: Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
The 5-Day Grand Tour
The 3-Day Escape, plus Wadi Bani Khalid and the Wahiba Sands, then Quriyat and Wadi Dayqah. One Muscat hotel, 4 nights.
Days 1 to 3 are the free 3-Day Escape. Days 4 and 5 add the desert and the dam: the oasis pools and the dunes at sunset, then flamingos, Oman's biggest dam and the ziplines over it. Same hotel all week. Day 4 has a hard route with a guide if you want it.
| Best for | A first visit, 5 days |
|---|---|
| Base | One Muscat hotel, 4 nights |
| Car | Any car (4×4 for Mibam and the hard route) |
| Days | 5 |
Day 1: Wadi Mibam, Sur & the turtles
coast road, dhow yard, Ras Al Hadd · driving ~5.5h
08:00 Coast road east
Route 17, the sea on your left.
09:45 Wadi Mibam
The top of the Tiwi valley: emerald pools, nobody there.
13:00 Lunch on the way, or in Sur
14:00 Sur dhow yard
Ocean-going dhows still built by hand. Walk right up to the hulls.
15:00 Sur old town & the Ayjah lighthouse
Whitewashed lanes, three watchtowers, the lighthouse across the bay.
17:00 Ras Al Hadd at sunset (optional)
Where the sun rises first in Arabia. Tonight it is the sunset.
20:30 Ras Al Jinz turtle reserve (optional)
Green turtles nesting in the dark.
21:30 Back to Muscat
Days 2 to 5
Day 2 The Daymaniyat Islands
boat, snorkel, sunset beach
Day 3 Nizwa & Misfat
the mountain village, the fort, the souq
Day 4 Wadi Bani Khalid & the Wahiba Sands
the oasis, then the dunes
Day 5 Quriyat & Wadi Dayqah
flamingos, the dam, ziplines
The whole route, hotel and car included: from about OMR 192 per person when four share.
Every day of this route, hour by hour, is in the app. The drives between stops, where to sleep, every entry fee and a costs receipt per person. One payment, $14.99, opens this route.
Unlock the route in the app →Tell us your dates and how many you are and we'll connect you with an MHT-licensed tour operator, who organises and runs the trip.
WhatsApp Explores OmanThe guide is free. If you'd rather hand the planning to a licensed guide, send me your dates and I'll build your route: the order, the drives, where to sleep and what it costs. Every trip is different, so I quote each one.
Request a quote on WhatsAppOpen this plan in the guide app →
Other Oman itineraries
- The Wadi Shab Day, One day, the famous swim, timed to the hour and costed to the rial.
- The Muscat Day, The capital done properly in one day. No 4x4, barely any driving, home for dinner.
- The 3-Day Escape: Coast, Islands, Nizwa, Day 1 Wadi Mibam, Sur and the turtles. Day 2 the Daymaniyat Islands. Day 3 Misfat and Nizwa. One Muscat hotel, any car.
- The 7-Day Full Oman, The 5-Day Grand Tour, plus Jabal Akhdar and a Muscat sea day: Sidab, Marjan, Muscat Bay. One hotel for the whole week.
From Exploring Oman, a guide to Oman by Hussain, a licensed Omani tour guide (@hussain_explores). 67 places and two 1-day plans, free to read; the 3, 5 and 7-day routes are in the app.
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