Best time to visit Muscat

The short answer

When Muscat is at its best

Muscat is the Omani capital and the rare Gulf city that has resisted the skyscraper template — a low-rise white-and-cream sweep along thirty kilometres of Arabian Sea coastline, with the Hajar mountains rising directly behind, the historic Mutrah district at the east end, and a planning code that famously caps building heights at the level of the surrounding palm trees. The right approach is two or three nights as the trip's launching point, treating Muscat as a destination in itself rather than a transit stop; the Sultan Qaboos Mosque alone earns a half-day, and the slow culture of the city — the dhow harbour at Mutrah, the souk's silver and frankincense, the corniche walk at golden hour — sets the tone for the inland mountain weeks that follow.