Dubai
Day 1
30.12.2019
We took the evening flight from Dusseldorf to Dubai, arriving there early in the morning. We had our hotel booked in Deira and expected to be able to get a room only after 12 pm, so we took our time to get our luggage, get the first Dirham from the ATM and organize a SIM Card. Since we didn’t have breakfast yet, we sat down at a Starbucks in the airport to have something there.
Eventually we left the airport by taxi to get to The Royal Falcon Hotel in Deira. We arrived there at 10:30 am, but to our surprise we were given a room already.
So we decided to rest for a while, before we went out to explore Dubai.
Our first stop was the Mwasalat ticket office at Abu Hail Metro station to purchase our bus tickets to go to Muscat on 02.01.2020. We had to wait a while until the cashier came back from his lunchbreak, then we bought 5 tickets for a total of 275 dirham (68,- EUR, 2250,- THB).
Once we got that settled, we went to Dubai Festival Mall, for several reasons. First of all, the local Hard Rock Café is located there. Second, we were hungry, and last but not least we wanted to enjoy a bit of window shopping, before going on a sight seeing tour around Dubai the next day.
To get to Dubai Festival Mall we had to change from the Metro to a bus line. We were surprised, how clean, and comfortable the bus stop was. The waiting room at the bus stop was closed, with a sliding door and an airconditioned room. The bus passed the airport, which was very exciting for our little ones.
On the way back to our hotel, we took another bus, but since the bus was a circle line, we accidently took it in the wrong direction, so we had to sit for much longer than se had expected. However, after changing to the Metro again, and riding on it for a couple of stations, we arrived in Deira. In order to see something of the area, even though at night, we decided to walk about 1,5 km back to the hotel.
Day 2
31.12.2019
The second day in Dubai began late, since it was new years eve, we slept long and skipped breakfast at all. Around 11:00 am we left the hotel. We had decided to walk to the Old Souk first, followed by the Gold Souk. On the way to the first sightseeing attraction, we had a good lunch in a café at the side of the Dubai Creek. The Old Souk as well as the Gold Souk had a rather disturbing atmosphere, because you couldn´t really walk freely without a vendor asking you to have a look at their goods, or someone praising the quality of the copy watches he had to offer.
Impressive on the other hand side was the window decoration of some of the Gold Souk shops, with large colliers of massive gold. After spending some time in the old part of Dubai, we walked to the next Metro station and headed to the Dubai Mall. Even though it was still early afternoon, we found that we didn´t arrive too early. The masses of people heading there was already immense. There is a long pedestrian bridge from the Dubai Mall Metro Station to the Mall itself. Walking along the bridge, we saw a sign pointing to Buji Khalifa Park with the note Families only. So we spent a bit of time in the Mall, before we intended to walk there. We wanted to see the fireworks from the park. But unfortunately, we were too late. The rush to the park was too much. A large crowd of families had gathered in front of the entrance, but the security had closed the entrance already. So we walk along the cordoned street until we found a nice place with a good view to the Burji Khalifa, we were 3 hours too early for the fireworks.
Anyway, we had a good time waiting there, and even our youngest were waiting without too much of trouble. Okay, we had to entertain them, but eventually the hours passed by and we enjoyed an impressive, but short firework.
As expected, it turned up to be quite difficult to get a taxi back to Deira. The last Metro left between 11 and 12 pm, so we had no other way to get back to our Hotel. Finally we found a driver, but of course on new years early morning, the meter was off, and the price was high. We paid 300 AED (75 EUR) for a taxi ride that would usually be 50 AED, maybe 60 AED.
Anyhow, we got back to the hotel and went to sleep around 2:30 AM, resting for our last day of sightseeing in Dubai.
Day 3
01.01.2020
The last day we had to spend in Dubai, began late. We slept long, all of us were tired of the previous evening.
We got up around 11 am and went out of the hotel at lunch time. We took the Metro to the station near the Gold Souk, and changed to a bus taking us directly to Jumeira Beach. Dubai without seeing the Burj Al Arab, felt incomplete. We had ice-cream at the beach and the kids played a bit on an nearby playground. Then we took the same busline to the Mall of the Emirates, and later the Metro to The Mall of Dubai, to eventually see the Burj Khalifa from the other side, which we were not able to enter the day before.
We had a nice dinner in one of the restaurants there. Unfortunatley we didn´t find a local cuisine restaurant, so we decided to have a Turkish dinner.
After some shopping, mainly clothes for the kids, we went back to the hotel to pack our suitcases and bags for our bus trip to Oman early next morning.
Oman
Oman
Day 1
02.01.2020
Dubai to Muscat
After seeing the fireworks at the Burj Khalifa on new years eve, and a last day of sightseeing in Dubai, including some shopping, we got up very early in the morning. We had to be at the Abu Hail Metrostation at 7 am to take the Mwasalat bus to Muscat. A short taxi ride from our hotel in Deira, for 20 Dirham, the busstop was easy to find.
The busdriver checked if our visa for Oman were complete, otherwise we would not have been able to take the bus.
The busride to Muscat consists of two parts. First you go to the border checkpoint on the UAE side at Hatta. Leaving UAE, you have to pay an exit fee of approx. 10 EUR for each traveler. After the exit fee is paid, the immigration is the next step. Once this was finished, we got back on the bus and took another 5 minutes ride to the luggage checkpoint. All passengers luggage has to be taken of the bus, to be inspected by an officer. Afterwards all luggage was placed in a row beside the bus and check again with a dog.
Another 5 minute busride later, we reached the immigration building on Oman side. We had to present our passports and the visa confirmation printout.
In Oman the bus had several stops where people got on and off the bus, which delayed the arrival in Muscat. But eventually we arrived at the Mwasalat bus terminal. Several taxi were waiting for passengers, but none of them was big enough for the 5 of us and our luggage, so we decided, that one had to go to the Nomad Tours office to pick up the rental car. The location of Nomad Tours was near, so it didin’t take very long.
We packed all our stuff into the trunk of the big Mitsubishi Pajero. After a stop at a nearby Mall, where we ate something and bought a good supply of water, we started to our first hotel (Shortfet Al Alamin) in the mountain range near Jebel Shams. It took about 2,5 hours to reach the hotel, half of which we had to drive in the dark. About 1900 m above sea level, the view from the hotel grounds was breathtaking, even at night. We had booked the hotel with half board, so we enjoyed a good dinner, before we moved into the room. The night sky was clear lots of stars were visible.
Day 2
03.01.2020
We had a chilly night, and some of us were freezing, but a hot shower refreshed all of us. We got ready for breakfast. There was a little playground at the hotel, and the kids enjoyed playing there, while we took a closer look to the surrounding area and looked down at the plain that stretched towards the sea.
We got ready for our first sightseeing day in Oman, which started with an unexpected adventure, that should last the complete day. Leaving the hotel, the paved road only lasted for a few hundred meter. After that, there were no more paved roads in the impressive mountains of northern Oman. Our decision to rent a 4x4 vehicle was absolutely right. The “road” consisted basically of gravel and sand, going up and down in steep incline/decline. We drove slow and steady, sometimes with the abyss on one side and a mountain of rocks on the other, with just enough space for the car on the road.
Due to these conditions it took more than one hour to drive the 13 km to Snake Gorge Canyon, our first hiking destination. We stop wherever we wanted to take pictures. The canyon was calm and only a handful other tourists stopped here too. We hiked along the small creek, as far as we could with our 2 & 3 year old kids. After 1,5 hours of hiking we got back to the car. An exciting attraction for the kids were the wild mountain goat we saw everywhere.
Our next destination was the base of Jebel Shams summit W4, about 24 km from Snake Gorge Canyon. It took another 1,5 hours to get there. Limited by the kids, we had a picnic there and enjoyed the view to the valley.
Because of the road conditions we decided to return early enough to reach the hotel before sunset. The route had a lot of impressive views and it took us almost 3 hours to return. The fuel consumption of the car was extraordinary, and our speed very low. The continuous gear switching caused a heating problem to the gear box oil, marked by a red bulb flashing in the dashboard and an annoying sound. Despite this problem we reached the hotel before sunset. The gearbox oil overheating was gone the next day.
We had dinner. The night sky had a lot of stars, time for a few pictures. After that we went to bed, with a huge load of memories.
Day 3
04.01.2020
We got up with the rising sun packed our stuff in the car, and had breakfast. Than we left the hotel with Al Hamra and the nearby Misfat Al Abriyyin, a unique small town with small alleys and a lot of stairs. After that we drove to Nizwa, approx. 50 minutes and a distance of 55 km. Nizwa is the ancient capital of Oman, home of the Nizwa Fort, that is nicely restored to it’s old beauty. The fort houses a museum, we were lucky to see a singing and dancing performance of a group of omani men. The garden of the Fort is worth visiting. Frogs and dragonflies in the water channel and our first encounter of a camel, were very exciting for the kids.
We had a little lunch at the local mall and filled up the fuel for the first time. For 15,600 OMR 70 liter of S95 petrol went into the tank of the car. (1OMR =77THB=2,3 EUR).
On the way to our next accommodation, Arabian Oryx Camp in Wahiba Sands, we didn’t stop apart from a few brief photo halts. Nevertheless we reached the Camp only after sunset. We checked in to our spacious tent. An hour later we had a delicious dinner buffet. A fire was put up in the middle of the circle of tents, but we were to tired of the journey. Hence we went to bed early again.
Day 4
05.01.2020
Again we had booked half board, so we ate a good breakfast, before we left for the days sightseeing trip. The destination was Wadi Bani Khalid. Even though using google maps for navigation we found that it’s always necessary to read the road signs to. If we followed google maps only, we would have gone to a wrong place. After one hour and 75 km we arrived at the entrance to the beautiful oasis. The natural pools at the foot of a canyon are a popular spot for tourists, many cars were parked there.
We prepared for hiking again and started on our trekking trip along the canyon. Our destination was the Muqal cave about 1,5 km from the parking. The route was not very difficult, but in some places still quite challenging for the kids. Anyway, the mastered it with an amazing spirit. Even the cave wasn’t to scary for us, and we went approx. 50 m into it, until we reached a underground pool with warm water. We saw bats, and we inhaled a lot of dust.
After getting back to the natural pools, we had an ice-cream and some lemon mint juice at the café located above the largest of the lakes.
We went straight back to the camp, and arrived there before sunset, so we still had time for a short camel ride. And even though especially the youngest were scared, eventually all of us enjoyed it.
Before having dinner at 7:30 pm, we went into the desert to see the sunset. With an accessory, that we had bought in Dubai, we took some Aladdin themed pictures in the sand dunes. Clouds at the horizon covered the sun on it’s decline, but still the sunset was very impressive. The calm desert surrounding us, provided a wonderful atmosphere.
After having dinner and sending the kids to bed, we sat at the fireplace and drank a nice hot coffee. The temperature dropped, a few clouds covered the sky, but after a while the sky cleared. The moonlight was quite bright, but still a few night sky pictures were possible.
Day 5
06.01.2020
The day began with a good breakfast for some of us, while others felt sick and didn’t want to eat at all. At 9:30 am we left the camp, with a new driver, bashing through the sand dunes, she became more and more confident. After 20 km we got back on the paved road and drove for another 45 km to the Old Castle Museum. The nicely renovated, sand color castle hosts a collection of traditional clothes, coins and banknotes from all over the world, toys and traditional mens and womens jewelry. The castle has an Indian guide, who took us around and explained everything as good as he could. Another worker at the castle was from Sudan. He served omani coffee and dates and a bottle of water for each of us.
On the way to our next hotel, we stopped at Sur, one of the bigger cities in the region. Sur has a nice fishery harbor with a lighthouse and beautiful houses. The only missing for a prosperous tourism are restaurants and café’s to cater the needs of visitors. So we end up having a lunch at the foodcourt of the latest mall in town.
45 km or 50 minutes later, we arrived at our hotel (Ras Al Hadd Guesthouse, now under the chain of OYO) . To my surprise the receptionist asked me, if I would like to cancel my existing reservation with booking.com! Our reservation for two nights didn’t include breakfast and was for 80 Omani Rial. The new offer was 65 Omani Rial including breakfast. So we didn’t hestitate to take the offer.
Because the kids were a bit sick, developing fever and coughing, we went to bed early and slept well. But in the middle of the night I woke up, because heavy rain was pouring down.
Day 6
07.01.2020
Our breakfast was served at 8 am, but this morning we didn’t go out for sightseeing. The kids had to rest in order to lower their fever. Around lunchtime they felt better, so we went to the beach near the hotel. A playground was the main attraction there. We saw the traces of a turtle in the sand.
Later we drove to the Turtle research center at Ras Al Jinz to book an evening turtle nestling tour. For 17 OMR we got the tickets. We followed the road to another attraction called Pink lake. Unfortunately the place turned out to be everything else but pink. Even a closer look didn’t show any pink. Instead we got in big trouble, because we underestimated the soft sand at the shore of the lake. After the car had stopped, it wasn’t possible to move it anymore, because the tire dug deeper and deeper into the quicksand, until the car was sitting on the ground with the wheels almost half covered with sand.
The first idea to free the wheels and put some plie wood under them, didn’t work as expected. So we didn’t have any other option than to ask locals for help. I walked towards the road, waving my arms, whenever a car passed by, and I was lucky enough to get some help from the third car that passed by. Three omani guys in a Toyota pickup truck started getting ropes and eventually a small excavator to free our car from the mud. They even paid the excavator driver 5 OMR for his help. We were so lucky to get help from these friendly people.
After all this trouble we were very hungry, so we stopped at the next restaurant. We had a tasty meal of rice, fried fish and squid with salad and water for 4,600 OMR. Filled with good food we returned to the hotel to rest a while before we went out for our evening/night activity.
At 8pm we arrived at the Turtle Research Center in Ras Al Jinz. We were ready for an interesting experience. Due to low season of the turtle nesting, which falls together with high season for tourists, we had to wait for almostn2 hours, until we were able to join a group to go to the beach. Meanwhile many had left, inpatient and bored of waiting. But staying, and waiting paid off. We walked to the beach , where we had to wait another 30 minutes. Meanwhile a guide explained about the turtle and the procedure of the nesting. Eventually we got to see the turtle as it lay the eggs in the hole it had dug. This night only 3 turtles came up the beach to lay their eggs. In their peak season there are 60 – 80 turtles per night at the beach.
When the turtle finished laying her eggs, we were allowed to see here filling the hole with sand, then we wanted to walk back to the Turtle Research Center. Since our two youngest were sleeping during the whole visit, our guide offered us a ride in his colleagues’ car, so we didn’t have to carry them back.
At 1 am we fell into bed, at it seemed like some of us were dreaming of being turtles at the beach.
Day 7
08.01.2020
This morning we had breakfast at 8:30 am, as the day before, the breakfast was rich, we couldn’t finish even half of it. All of us had taken a shower before we had breakfast, hence we only had to pack our belongings into the car and take of for our last long trip to Muscat. With a total of 255 km ahead, Google maps estimated the duration of driving there with 3 hours, 40 minutes.
But we had stops planned, so the traveling time became longer.
Our first stop was at the Bibi Maryam Mausoleum, a Unesco world heritage side, which was under reconstruction, so we couldn’t enter the place. But even though saw the sign, be still drove up the bill, and stopped there. After a while a friendly Omani came to tell us, that the side was closed for reconstruction. So, we left and followed the highway to our next destination, the Bimmah Sinkhole. What we didn’t expect was to find a nice park with a playground, surrounding the sinkhole, that, as it seems typical for Oman, didn’t have any entrance fee. The sinkhole is about 15 meter deep to the surface of the water, and probably another 5 – 6 m deep under water. It has a diameter of approx. 25- 30 m and lays about 800 m inland from shore of the Gulf of Oman. Still it is filled with seawater, which makes it so special.
After this last stop on our way to Muscat, it took us another 2 hours to drive to our last “hotel”, Behly’s Villa in the west of Muscat. We checked in and left our luggage on the room and gave some laundry to the maid of the house, since she offered to wash our laundry, when we asked her for a Laundry shop. Then we left to Mutrah Harbour in the east of Muscat.
The harbor has a nice scenery and an old souk with small alleys. An old castle sits on top of a rock over the harbor front. The area is clean and tidy, but as we noticed in other placed, it lags of restaurants with a nice local atmosphere. It seems to be very common and popular for the locals to eat fast food from small kiosk/imbiss, but that was not what we were looking for.
Eventually we found a lace to have dinner, with a local character, but the restaurant also served Indian food, maybe due to the many Indian expats living in Oman.
After dinner we went back to the hotel to rest early for the next day, our last day of Oman nature sightseeing.
Day 8
09.10.2020
We had decided to return to the rough mountainous area in the north of Oman. Hence we got up early and had a good breakfast prepared by Nelum, the maid at Behly’s Villa, from Srilanka. Around 8:30 am, we were all ready and got on the road.
Our first short stop at a petrol station held something special. The shop of the petrol station hat a Starbucks self service, where one could prepare his own hot Starbucks beverage.
The first destination we had planned visiting was Nakhal Fort, approx. 100 km from Muscat. The fort was under reconstruction, so we couldn’t enter, but still we were able to take some pictures of the building. After the brief stop, we drove further to Wakan Village. Another 40 km, but aswell about 1 hour driving, we reached the village in the mountains eventually.
At the parking, we noticed a camper van from Switzerland with the picture of a dog on the door. We were happy to find a public toilet near the parking. The village that we had reached on the gravel road, was only the entrance to a wonderful park like landscape stretching over the ridge of the mountain behind the village. The path was prepared very nicely with stairs and handrails, and we followed it until the very end. About half way trough the garden, we met the swiss couple, owners of the camper van, with their dog. We talked to them for a while and learned that they were traveling for 4 month already, planning to continue their journey until Thailand for another year. We were able to give some information on entering Thailand with a camper van, since there are a few restrictions.
At the end of the path we enjoyed the calm environment for a while. It was very quiet, from far we heard dogs barking, may in a town at the bottom of the valley below us.
A small canal with fresh water ran beside the path and bigger pools of about 2 meter depth lay beside the path every few hundred meter. We saw pomegranate trees, grapevine and even corn, many kinds of herbs and other plants providing vegetables and fruits to the villagers.
After 1,5 hours light hiking we began our return trip to Muscat, that took us approx. 2 hours.
Before going back to Behly’s Villa, we stopped at Muscats biggest mall, Oman Avenue for dinner. We had a tasty bbq dinner at the Arabian Grill House, and for dessert we got a large load of Cinnabon cinnamon rolls, which we had at the garden of Behly’s Villa.
Day 9
10.01.2020
Our last day in Oman began with a late breakfast. We had some cinnamon rolls left to make the breakfast even better. While the kids were running around chasing the cats of the house, we relaxed. After we finished breakfast we packed all our belongings into the car and drove to the Oman Avenue Mall again. The actual plan was to let the kids run around and make them tired, but as usual, it didn’t work. We were surprised to find a Starbucks in the mall, which we hadn’t seen the day before. This time we had our coffee prepared by the Starbucks staff, instead of doing it our self.
At 2:30 pm we returned the car to Nomad. We had to pay extra for 294 km over the included distance, and for the car cleaning, however the total cost for the car rental were bearable.
The friendly Omani from the car rental company drove us to the airport and a few hours later we were on our flight home. First on the shortest commercial flight with an A380-800 from Muscat to Dubai, for only 40 minutes. Then, after a short layover, on another A380-800 from Dubai to Bangkok.
Eventually we reached home on Saturday 11.01.2020 in the morning.
