Oman is a cracking country for a 5 day trip. It has that wonderful Middle East vibe without the extreme restrictions of the likes of Saudi or Iran, the extreme opulence of the UAE and Qatar, and without the crowds of Egypt and Jordan. To add to the mix, it has a surprisingly diverse offering – world class mountains, vast red deserts, gorge and canyon exploring, and all with the capital Muscat acting as a hub to launch yourself on these adventures
Its only real downsides are that it tends to be expensive; doesn’t have the well trodden traveller path (so you need to do a lot on your own); and, outside of the Hajar Mountains which are sensational, doesn’t have so many of the world class attractions you’ll find in other parts of the Middle East. That being said, the below itinerary was cracking fun
Top tips:
- #1 Prioritise the following 3 things (in order) – 4WD in the Hajar Mountains (including the forts of Nizwa and Bahla as they are en route); Hiking and swimming Wadi Shab; Staying in the red desert of Sharqiya Sands. Muscat only needs a day max and you’ll naturally find this time as you’ll fly in and out of there
- #2 Five days is enough, but with little chill out time – the 3 highlights above are all within 2 hours drive of Muscat and typically only need 0.5 days (Wadi Shab), 1 day (Sharqiya Sands) and 1.5 days (the mountains). Two ways of looking at it:
- If full of energy and trying to get the most out of the 5 days – the itinerary below is very doable and, if slightly impatient, you’ll find that you’ll be done with the places quite quickly (eg you really don’t need more than the morning in Wadi Shab and overnight in the desert). You could even choose between Jebel Shams and the 4WD mountain road to make this a 4 day trip
- If want more of a chill out – either make it a week, or chose between either Jebel Shams (famous) or the 4WD mountain road (spectacular, adventure
- #3 Oman is expensive – it’s quite a shock when you see that the exchange rate is 3US$ to the Omani Rial . . . as in, the other way around!! Everything is more expensive than you’ll likely be used to, so it pays to scan for in particular cheap accommodation and a decent deal on the 4WD
- #4 Driving – you need a car if not on a tour, as public transport is pretty poor. Broadly the deals started at around US$35 / day for a basic rental car, and around 2/2.5 times that for a 4WD – so it may actually make sense to take the 2WD for certain parts and change for 4WD when needed, which is what I did. As always, have a scan on RentalCar to see what the rates look like.
- What about a 4WD? The 4WD makes a lot of the trip easier as you can easily drive up to Jebel Shams, drive to your desert camp in Sharqiya Sands) and is an absolute must for the drive across the mountains via Hatt. That being said, the drive up to Jebel Shams is very doable in a 2WD (no restrictions); you can easily get the Desert Camp to pick you up from the town of Al Wasil or any pre-arranged meeting spot on the main road; and the drive across the mountain road via Hatt can be optional if you’re not up for the nerve jangling. Be sure as well to check that it is a genuine 4WD, rather than a 2WD SUV (which the second rental company were not clear on)
- #5 How to behave / what to wear – Oman felt very much on the chilled out end of the Middle East spectrum, and used to western tourists. Whilst its always better to dress a bit more like a local (they find it odd, for example, that we wear shorts at all), for the itinerary below, there were no places where you would feel uncomfortable wearing clothes showing knees / shoulders
- #6 – for greater detail on individual parts of this trip, see the following travel entries:
Wadi Shab is a large gorge that makes its way from the Eastern Hajar Mountains to meet the Arabian Sea. Purely for looking at it is beautiful – steep arid dramatic sides rising above and crystal clear turquoise water rushing through the streams and irrigation channels that cross all through the gorge (and are actually UNESCO World Heritage sites on their own). But, the main reason the trip is so cool and worth the visit is the mini adventure of hiking and then swimming through the warm water of the gorge to find the partly submerged cave with small waterfall at the end. Great fun
Top tip – get there early. I arrived at 745am and had the walk and swim into the gorge completely to myself, which was magical. The way back I counted maybe 50 people passing me, which would have been a very different vibe and suggests that groups arrive around 9am. The small boats that transport you the first 2-3 mins across the water start at 7am (1 Omani Rial / USD2.5), so you can start anytime from then
How much time is needed – the guides say 4 hours, but I think you only need 2-3 hours – 45mins to walk to the start of swim, 30mins for the swim (wading / swimming / standing – not all swimming!), and then a bit shorter on the way back. I was back on the small boats after 2 hours and wasn’t at all rushing
What to bring – because the swim is at the end, I reckon you could get by without a dry bag or water shoes because you can just leave your dry stuff at the start of the swim. That being said, the adventure feel of taking the dry bag with me through the swim was fun
The gap into the partly submerged cave at the end is very small! I turned up, on my own, not knowing there was a cave or a small gap – quite the moment deciding to go for it!
You don’t need a guide – it’s a very straightforward route and not really worth the OR25 / USD65
Where to stay – Wadi Shab Resort was basic (most places are in Oman) but really nice with immediate access to the pebble beach where you can spot sea turtles
Wow it really is as picture-perfect as you’ve been led to believe! All the ingredients of a fairy tale:
– small church perched perfectly on a small island ✅
– sitting in the middle of crystal clear water with only the light lapping of town boats ✅
– castle nearby hanging over a precarious ledge to the water ✅
– backdrop of the Julian Alps ✅
An Instagrammer’s dream!
The 6km / 3.7mile run around the lake, the swim over the island and the variety of other outdoor options nearby make this a great experience
Make sure to stay for 1 or 2 nights (as opposed to a day trip) so you can soak up the magical feeling of the place
South East Asia has to be the premier world traveling region. A big call? For sure, but consider what genuinely world class offerings it can provide:
- World class beaches and coastal areas – think of THAT beach in Ko Phi Phi and HaLong Bay, one of the Natural Wonders of the World
- World class food – think Thai, Vietnamese, Malay and the genuine fusion into the mix with the large established Indian and Chinese communities
- World class ancient sites and history – think of the temples of the “8th Wonder of the World” of Angkor Wat, and the breathtaking site of the pagodas stretching across the plain in Bagan
- World class cities and party locations – think of Singapore as the city of the future and the Full Moon Parties on Ko Pha-Ngan
And all this in a place that is super safe, outrageously friendly, easy and cheap to travel in. A must for any keen traveler and the below itinerary will give you the highlights – enjoy!
My girlfriend and I went on a 6month trip around Latin America (excluding Brazil). Started in the far South in the Tierra del Fuego in Argentina and, broadly, made our way up the west coast to the Yucatan Peninsular of Mexico. Best large scale trip I’ve done, and wanted to share the overall itinerary and tips here to hopefully help those who are considering something similar
A few high level points:
- Other than the flights there and the first hotel, there were only three things we booked in advance: the Inca Trail (which we knew we needed to for permits); plus for Patagonia a trip through Torres del Paine National Park and a ferry through the fjords (as we were going at peak season and only a couple of weeks after we landed). Everything else, we booked when in Latin America and, in our opinion, that is the best way to do it – gives you the freedom to relax in the places you find that you love and be super flexible to do what you want to do
- Total costs – my girlfriend and I went in our 30s, with no kids and on sabbaticals from work. We’re not poor, but certainly not mega wealthy. We didn’t stay in super expensive hotels (other than for the occasional splurge), flew economy and used a bit of common sense for timings of certain expensive items, but never held back on doing the things we wanted to do. Some examples of big ticket items: US$5k for a week diving in the remote Wolf & Darwin Islands in the Galapagos; US$1.2k for 4 days in Torres del Paine National Park in Patagonia; US$800 for a helicopter trip to see the El Mirador Mayan ruins in the Guatemalan jungle; US$700 for the Inca Trail. Total cost of the whole trip was US$34k each. This included all flights, transport, hotels, activities, food, drink, guides, screwing things up, credit card fees – the lot. Expensive, but so are most Experiences of a Lifetime
- It’s not about trying to “do everything” – in a place as large as Latin America, you couldn’t even if you tried – so don’t think of things as a big tick box exercise. Brazil, for example, we knew we couldn’t do justice whilst also trying to enjoy all the other amazing places we’d heard of, so left it for next time
- In the similar vain, make sure you give yourself big chunks of time to chill out. Not only to recharge the batteries, but also because most places are enjoyed when you spend time to soak up the feel for the place. There were some places . . . like Lake Atitlan in Guatemala, Buenos Aires in Argentina, Isla Mujeres in Mexico, Bocas del Toro in Panama . . . where I could have spent weeks there just because the general vibe of the place was so wonderful
- Safety – we weren’t robbed, but many people do either having a bag stolen or, unpleasantly, get robbed face to face. Other than a couple of cities, we generally felt super safe the places we went and tried to just apply common sense to reduce our risks
- Learn a bit of Spanish before you go – the app DuoLingo was great for getting us to a basic level that made a lot of difference. But also don’t be afraid to pull out google for simultaneous conversation translations to really be able to have a conversation with someone – some long trips became some of our highlights just from being able to properly talk with the driver / locals. I particularly remember a long taxi ride in Colombia where we went back and forward for 2 hours with the driver on everything from his home town to politics to football to his favourite movies to his family problems- never could have done that without Spanish or google. In a similar vein, and using the right level of common sense, don’t turn down an invite for drinks / dinner / house visit with locals. There are some truly unforgettable natural and cultural spots to see, but similarly an evening with a local family will be something likely to be just as unforgettable
- Whenever checking out a place or must-do-site, its easy to get templed / churched / ancient site / beached out. Always do a very basic bit of research to see if there is a more out of the ordinary way to experience it – by bike / drinking tour / kayaking / helicopter / whatever. Thats what we tried to do, and I hope it reflected in some of the cool stuff listed below
We were blown away by our 10 days in Guatemala. Two of the most idyllic and beautiful places you can imagine with Lake Atitlan and Semuc Champey; a gorgeously preserved insight into former Spanish colonial times in the Old Town of Antigua; world-class ancient ruins with the #1 Mayan site of Tikal and the adventure into the jungle to see the mystic El Mirador; gorgeous jungles and mountains across the country; and all done so with the wonderful Guatemalan people
Really rated Guatemala and I’d place it as my favourite country for travelling in Central America
In central Guatemala, the Cahabon River bumps its way along a series of limestone mini bridges and caves to produce a little bit of jungle paradise. Whilst it is quite a distance from Guatemala’s other star attractions such as Lake Atitlan (see the travel entry 3 days relaxing and diving by the beautiful Lake Atitlan for more details) and Antigua (see Soaking up Antigua) in the west and Tikal (see Mayan ruins of Tikal) in the east, the bright greens of the jungle mixed in with the whites of the mountain clouds and the turquoise blues of the water make Semuc Champey one of the most beautiful spots in the country and a perfect spot to visit as part of a 10 day trip around Guatemala (see here at Itinerary for 10 wonderful days in Guatemala for the itinerary)
Two big tips – get there for when the park opens to avoid the crowds (we had the place to ourselves); and don’t try to drive up the road from Lanquin when raining (seriously, it becomes a gushing river)
Even in a country that prides itself for its abundance of wildlife, Corcovado National Park stands out in Costa Rica as the premier wilderness experience. The park’s sheer size, remoteness and restricted number of visitors means that your group will often feel like you have the park to yourself to go adventuring. And with the the diversity, concentration of wildlife and stunning views, you’re unlikely to be disappointed
A word of warning though – this is walking and camping in a remote rainforest. Getting there alone takes the best part of a day from the more connected parts of the country and, although the campsites are clean and the guides incredibly helpful, the facilities are basic. So, get yourself ready for . . . well . . . camping in the jungle ie hot, wet, muddy . . . but a fantastic experience and, in my opinion, the highlight of Costa Rica
The Cuidad Perdida (Lost City) was first built around the 12th century and was abandoned when the local people (the Tayrona) fled deeper into the jungle to escape the Spanish Conquistadores and their insatiable drive for gold. Only rediscovered in the 1970s, the Lost City itself is an inspiring site to visit – mysterious terraces going up the mountainous jungle and built far before the likes of Machu Picchu. But it is the trek itself – 4 days through some of the most beautiful jungle in Colombia and through some of the still existing hill tribes – that makes this a wonderful experience
It was a lot harder than we thought – 44km (27 miles) of quite steep terrain and, of course for this part of the world, hot and humid – so be prepared, but make this a must do if in this part of the world
Yeah the National Park is nice – you can walk through the jungle areas to get to the beautiful beaches, and don’t get me wrong it is indeed nice – but it gets pretty crowded. My tip would be to stay in one of the chilled out beach hotels in the fantastic area just past the eastern end of the park, where the river meets the sea
The hotels themselves are lovely, and the nearby beach between the sea and the lake is gorgeous. We ended up extending our stay for 4 nights because we liked it so much and headed over to the park for two of the days, avoiding the rush of a day trip from Santa Marta. Search for Maloka Barlovento for the right spot. We stayed there and would recommend
Nearby you also have two super things to do – firstly, and easiest, is Cartagena’s wonderful Old Town that ranks as one of the best in Latin America and see more tips at the travel entry Soaking up the Cartagena Old Town. But the highlight is the 4days / 3 nights Hiking the Lost City Trek where you trek through the jungle to the mystical Lost City. And have a look at how it can all come together in a itinerary for 3 weeks in Colombia
One last tip – “Cayman Aguja” is a sign you’ll see put up all along the shore. It isn’t a type of cayman, its an American Crocodile!
