Tour of Old Muscat

The historic center of the state

Petr Liška
Wrote 2420 articles and follows him / her 243 travelers
Inserted: 26.04.2018
© gigaplaces.com

Old Muscat is quite different from the modern conurbation of modern Muscat stretching for tens of kilometers along the coast. It is basically a small historic town protected on practically all sides by mountains. You will find a number of important buildings here, including the interesting palace of Sultan Qaboos. Especially in the early evening it is a pleasant tour

Gate Museum

As in many other cities, a huge entrance gate is built in front of Old Muscat. The so-called Gate Museum also operates in this. If you have time and interest, you can see an exhibition dedicated to the history of Oman

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

A small mosque in Old Muscat

You can stop in a fairly large parking lot near the private Bait al-Zubair Museum (where you can see weapons or historical equipment of Omani houses). We are here in the early evening and we are more attracted to a walk outside. There is a small mosque right next to the parking lot.

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

On the way to Mirani fortress

We are the first to set off in the direction of the Mirani fortress. On the one hand, quite poor development on the other, a monumental government building surrounded by a proper wall

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

View of the Mirani fortress

Fort Al-Mirani (built by the Portuguese) is like the vast majority of Omani castles and fortresses beautifully restored. The view on it is great from almost all sides. The fortress itself was much destroyed in 1552, when Muscat was conquered by the Ottoman Turks

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

View of the next fortress

Cross the rock ridge through the tunnel and you will finally find yourself by the sea. From here you can see another fortress in Kalbuh. It is probably difficult to get directly to the fortress, because there are port buildings in front of it.

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

Views of Fishers Rock Island

Just half a mile from the mainland is the interesting island of Fishers Rock with another fortress, a lighthouse at the top.

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

View of Al Jalali Fort

Directly below the Mirani Fort is a view of the Al Jalali Fort guarding the other end of the bay.

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

Sultan's Palace Al Alam

Among the fortresses is the architecturally interesting palace of the Sultan – Al Alam – translated as the flag.

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

Al Khor Mosque

Directly below the Mirani fortress is another important local monument – the Al Khor Mosque

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

Promenade in Old Muscat

The very center of Old Muscat is a large area and promenade connecting the Sultan's Palace with the Omani National Museum.

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

Mountains above Old Muscat

The peaks above Old Muscat are only about 100 meters above sea level, but they seem significantly higher. Many of them have guard forts. It's quite tempting to explore.

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

Life on the promenade

Local families as well as Indians are all photographed in front of the Sultan's Palace – a clear destination for this trip. Rather, it is quiet, unlike, for example, the Corniche promenade

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

At the National Museum

You can walk along the promenade to the roundabout surrounded by other important buildings such as the National Museum

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com

Young soccer players in Muscat

Before sunset, young boys play football. You can often find football pitches all over the country in the desert

Author: Petr Liška © gigaplaces.com
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