A nation conquered and colonised now flourishes, a crossroads of people and trade where ancient souks ring with the sound of spice merchants, just as they have for centuries.

To me, a visit to Oman is to enjoy in distilled form what travel should be about – feeling in awe, feeling alive. It is this feeling of wonder I experienced when watching villagers tend the traditional aflaj-fed gardens that clung to the cliff face at Jebel Akhtar. Or stood and marvelled at the ancient stone and mud houses at Wadi Ghul and Misfah Al Abriyeen. On a cruise from Khasab, I saw nature at it’s most playful as dolphins frolicked by the bow of our wooden dhow. And I felt humbled as huge green turtles dragged themselves up the beach at Ras al-Jinz to lay tiny white eggs in the light of a full moon.


Oman is a country draped in contrasts that span millennia. At Ubar, an ancient and once great city lies half swallowed by the desert while the capital Muscat is bejewelled by the opulent Sultan Qaboos Mosque, a place of worship and wonder, carved by the finest artists from the finest materials. Oman can boast some of the world’s finest hotels, treating the traveller to comfortable stay without compromising or sterilising this true taste of Arabia. And New Horizon’s range of fully guided tours should be part of your Omani Odyssey, for without them I would not have felt this remarkable country.