Oman

Visa requirements for Oman depend on which passport you hold. Check the Traveller visa tool to see whether your passport needs a visa and, if so, how long you can stay.

October–March is the cool season — best for Muscat's Muttrah Souq and Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque, Wadi Shab (swim through a canyon to a hidden waterfall), Wahiba Sands (dune camping under extraordinary stars), Jebel Akhdar (the Green Mountain, rose gardens, terraced villages), and Salalah (frankincense country — green in the khareef monsoon July–September). April–September is very hot except in Salalah.

• Modest dress throughout — Oman is a conservative Muslim sultanate
• Women: cover arms and legs in public areas and souqs; swimwear at beach resorts
• Men: long trousers in the old town and at mosques

• Oman is consistently rated the friendliest country in the Arab world — Omani hospitality is warm, direct, and without the tourist-industry transactionalism of some Gulf states
• The Omani dishdasha (white robe) is worn with great pride — the khanjar (curved dagger) is a national symbol and part of formal dress
• Frankincense has been traded from the Dhofar region (Salalah) for 5,000 years — it was among the most valuable substances in the ancient world; Oman produced much of the world's supply
• Wadi culture — wadis (dry riverbeds that flood seasonally) cut through the Hajar Mountains creating stunning swimming holes; Wadi Bani Khalid and Wadi Shab are unmissable

• LGBTQ+ same-sex activity is illegal; exercise extreme caution
• Alcohol available at licensed hotels and restaurants — not in public
• Dress modestly in public — swimwear only at designated beach areas
• Photography of royal palaces and military installations prohibited