Oman was one of the first places on our bucket list when we moved to Dubai. It's so close - it borders the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to the very north, and to the southeast. It's underrated and a truly hidden gem.
If you want to see a wild map, I recommend googling more about the land borders between Oman and the UAE. There's a bit of Oman that is detached from the rest of the country to the north of the UAE, situated at the tip of the Arabian Peninsula. This area is referred to as "Musandam" and this is where we've spent most of our time in Oman. However, there's another bit of Oman that's trapped inside of mainland UAE, and inside of that is the UAE - Oman is this donut ring sitting inside of the UAE, and then the UAE fills the hole in the middle of the Oman donut. Crazy geopolitics. But, mainland Oman, which sits on the eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, north of Yemen and east of Saudi Arabia, includes the cities of Muscat and Salalah and is also worth a visit.
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Not To Miss
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Dhow Cruise
While in Musandam, don't miss a dhow cruise. A dhow is a traditional, wooden boat - historically with a sail - that were commonly used in the Arabian Peninsula. Many are still in use today as fishing or tourist vessels today. Hire a dhow for either a day or overnight trip, and boat around to take in the incredible rock formations and landscape that can only be truly appreciated from the water. And, if you stay overnight, you'll see the bright glow and twinkle of the water at night because of the high concentration of phosphorescence.
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Dolphins
There are loads of dolphins in the waters surrounding Musandam. If you hire a dhow and boat around for a day, you're sure to see dolphins swimming up alongside of your boat. The crew who run the boats seem to have perfected the dolphin whistle.