(Photos included below)
This is by far one of my most favourite places I have visited in Oman for many reasons. Firstly, this village looks like any ordinary village on a mountain until you realise that it actually houses a cafe, a few guesthouses, a hotel, a gift shop, local residences, little alleys and most importantly, a breathtaking view no matter where you are in the village.
Now, I heard about this place from many sources. People, Instagram and somewhere on google when I typed in “places to visit in Oman”. Something about it just stood out to me. I visited Italy a few years ago and was blown away by Positano. A village similar to this one, up in the mountains, secluded from the city and most importantly, very quiet. So, I packed my bags and drove about 2 hours from Muscat. Honestly, it was a pretty straight forward drive, and it wasn’t hard to find at all. The road leading up to the village from Al Hamra was paved which is great. We got there at around 3pm I think, which was a great time cause it wasn’t unbearably hot, not was the sun uncomfortable, so that’s why I think we got there at 3pm. As we walked down the village, a hike appeared, so of course, we followed it. It lead us to one of my all time favourite hikes thus far in my life. Be warned, your hamstrings will be working over time, as will your camera. The hike lasts around an hour, maybe 2 depending on how fast/slow you walk and how many photos you take. It’s a very safe hike as long as you’re careful due to some parts of the hike being right on the edge of the mountain with no barrier stopping you from falling over.
I didn’t end up staying there overnight as I actually had no idea there were guest houses or a hotel, and I was sort of regretting not doing research on that in advance cause honestly, I would have loved to have stayed there over night, I can only imagine what the sky would look like at night time. Anyway, the first thing I did was explore the little alleyways. These alleyways led to different paths and I took full advantage of trying to get semi-lost. I got to see all the old and authentic residences. One thing I noticed was how preserved everything was, which for me is a huge plus. Once that was done, I went to the cafe which had an incredible view of the village right across from Misfat Al Abriyeen (which I also went to very quickly). I sat and had a fresh orange juice (freshly squeezed with no ice or sugar thank you very much) as well as a packet of Chips Oman). Once that was done, I went to the gift shop where the owner had a plethora of items such as fresh honey, bukhoor, oils, pots and anything else you could think of to be honest.
Here’s a tip, if you do end up going, stay there overnight. I reckon meandering around the village at night is a vibe unmatched.
