Oman is known to be famous for its cultural and traditional heritage. Oman has various tourist attractions, especially in the area of Islamic architecture and places known to have oldest traditional values. If you are coming to Oman and wondering where should you go, you are at the right place.

The broad categories of locations which can be visited are as follows. Each link below has a separate post related to that category. This post covers Cultural and Traditional markets.

• Islamic Architecture and Buildings (Part 1)
• Cultural and Traditional markets (Part 2)
• Mountain Ranges (coming soon)
• Wadis (valleys) (coming soon)
• Beaches and coastlines. (coming soon).

Cultural and Traditional markets

1. Muttrah Souq

The word Souq in Arabic literally means market. The Muttrah Souq is perhaps one of the oldest marketplaces in the Arab world. It is located at the Corniche of Muttrah. It’s one of the most popular tourist attraction in Muscat. Al Dhalam Souq (Darkness in Arabic) is the local name for the Muttrah Souq. It has been named after darkness because of the crowded stalls and lanes where the sun rays do not infiltrate during the day. The shops are mainly selling gold,household goods, shoes and ready-made garments. Further inside, there is a sale of frankincense, perfume oils, fresh jasmine, and spices.

Good for: Gift items and souvenirs. Also to see local culture and traditions. The souk can be somewhat deceptive at first acquaintance: it’s a lot larger, and a lot more confusing, than you might initially suspect. You could spend many enjoyable hours here, haggling over handicrafts and attempting to make sense of the maze. Off course it’s a heaven for photography. Also locals here are accustomed to photographers so do capture some traditional and environmental portraits.

Visitor Timings : 8am-9pm everyday

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2. Muttrah Fish Market

Muttrah fish and vegetable market is an ideal place where you can start your tour as it is very close to Muttrah Souq and Corniche. While it was once upon a time an open-air bazaar with dozens of stalls, it has now been replaced by a state-of-the-art indoor complex that has modern food preservation machinery and freezers. Still if you are curious enough, you can go to the dock where actual boats come and go for fishing. You can witness that activity very early morning at the time of sunrise.

Good for: Witnessing the activity of fishermen as they arrive and go during first half of the day. You can get absolutely fresh fishes from here. There are some good restaurants nearby offering fresh sea food.Last of all, it’s a heaven for photography. Again locals here are accustomed to photographers so do capture some traditional and environmental portraits of fishermen.

Visitor Timings : from sunrise to noon.

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3. Nizwa Souq

Nizwa city is around two and a half hour drive from the capital Muscat. Nizwa is previously know as the cultural capital of Oman. So be ready to witness some of the most sought after cultural sites of Oman in Nizwa. It is quite different from Muttrah Souq. Most of the market, however, is dedicated to pottery, antiques, textiles and other paraphernalia. Nizwa is particularly famous for crafting the silver khanjar (traditional curved dagger). Nizwa has a famous Cattle market as well but it only opens on Fridays.

Good for: It is good for purchasing gift items and souvenirs. Also to to see local culture and traditions. It has a very good market for dates,vegetables and cultural clothing. Photography is a must. Be ready to take breath taking shots.

Visitor Timings: It is open daily for two trading sessions—except on Fridays, when the souq is only open in the morning. From Thursday to Saturday, things kick off at 6am. The day trade winds up at 1pm when people break for lunch and prayer. It gets going again at 4pm, and the souq stays open until 10pm.

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This post is still under construction. I am adding more cultural sites as I am getting further info and pictures. All pictures in this post are by Author – Imran Zahid (the shades Photography) unless otherwise stated. Do visit other sections from top listing.

I conduct Photography tours and vacation shoots mostly in Muscat and sometimes other parts of Oman on a regular basis. If you are coming to Oman for few days and want to visit places best suited for photography, checkout my Oman Photography Tour page and if you just want a quick vacation photo shoot in Oman, do check out Book a vacation photographer in Oman. Feel free to reach me on im.zahid@hotmail.com.