Grand Escapades’ Budget Guide To Oman – An Upscale & (Very) Expensive Destination
At the Cattle Market in Nizwa
Type Of Travel
Oman is an upscale and expensive destination, no matter how you travel and how hard you try to save money.
Itinerary & Time Of The Visit
We spent 2 weeks in Oman over X-mas 2012 & New Year 2013. Our itinerary covered Muscat (the capital), Jebel Shams & Jebel Akhdar (the mountains), Nizwa (oases, fortresses and more), the Wahiba Sands (desert), Ras Al Jinz (turtles) & last but not least Musandam (the lonely peninsula on the Strait of Hormuz). This is roughly the route we covered, with many more places in between.
Global Budget
We spent 2.000 € in two weeks per person, which brings expenses to 141 Euros per person per day. If you add the flights from Europe, it means 200€ per person per day. And we did not even splurge!
| Costs per Person per Day in € | |
| Long Distances’ Transport | € 29,30 |
| Short Distances’ Transport | € 0,00 |
| Total Transport | € 29,30 |
| Hotels | € 49,90 |
| Restaurants & Food | € 14,40 |
| Drinks & Going Out | € 0,00 |
| Every Day Life (& Souvenirs) | € 7,20 |
| Total Living | € 71,50 |
| Visits & Tours | € 17,70 |
| Activities | € 22,40 |
| Total Tours & Activities | € 40,10 |
| Total Country: | € 140,90 |
Heidi @ L’Espace Guesthouse in Muscat
Hostels & Hotels
Hotels are extremely expensive: a guesthouse will charge on average 80 to 100 € and the people we met who ventured in cheaper options had a challenging time. If you want to splurge, you won’t have any problem doing so! There is an amazing network of 5 star hotels around the country… Expect to spend 200+ € per night though. Last but not least, expect very basic accommodation in the various camps, both in the Wahiba Sands and in Raz Al Jinz… No matter how much you pay!
| City | Name | Type of Accommodation | Type ofRoom | Price per Night (€) | Evaluation(1 to 5 Stars) |
| Muscat | Lana Villa Guesthouse | 88,20 | *** | ||
| Jebel Shams | Jebel Shams Resort | 143,50 | *** | ||
| Nizwa | Majan Guesthouse | 71,80 | ** | ||
| Wahiba Sands | Nomadic Desert Camp | 155,80 | ** | ||
| Ras Al Jinz | Al Naseem Turtel Camp | 123,00 | * | ||
| Muscat | Tulip Inn Hotel | 112,70 | **** | ||
| Khasab | Al Taif Tours Accomodation | 61,50 | *** | ||
| Muscat | L’Espace | 112,80 | **** |
Al Shamaliah Grill Restaurant in Khasab at night, Musandam
Restaurants & Food
Food is good and extremely cheap in comparison to accommodation. It can get a bit monotonous outside of Muscat though, when it is Indian or Indian. We spent 200 € per person in two weeks on food and had a few great dinners.
Drinks & Going Out
We have no detailed information on this, since we certainly did not party. Drinks are included in our Restaurants & Food Budget. Alcohol is available at the bars of international hotel, and there you actually find more Omanis in a party mood than Western visitors.
Transport
First, there is no network of public transport, so you have to have a car. Car rentals are cheap in comparison to Europe and gasoline costs close to nothing, nevertheless this remains a significant part of the budget: 350 € per person for the 2 weeks.
Sedan or 4WD?
This we asked ourselves quite a bit before we started off. Roads are excellent, so a sedan car will do for reaching most places, except crossing the Hajer Mountains, going from Nakhal to Jebel Shams. Even Wahiba Sands is doable in a sedan, since most of the agencies will pick you up for a small fee.
Common Dolphin (Delphinus Delphis) in the Fjords (Khor) of Musandam
Tours & Activities
Activities such as dune bashing are costly. We spent 460 € altogether per person in 2 weeks, including twice scuba diving
Splurge At Reasonable Costs?
Oman is definitely not a place to splurge, if budget is of any importance for you.
Reduce Costs?
If you find any way to do so, we are interested…
In Khasab, Musandam
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