Motorroutes in Oman

With more than 2,000 metres of baking hot rock to ascend and plenty of narrow switchbacks and big drops to negotiate, this exhilarating off-roading route takes you right into the heart of Oman's Al Hajar mountains- and out the other side. Boom!

Fill up your jerry cans, deflate your tyres, and cruise through this stunningly beautiful and fascinating area of immense dunes, 'sabkha' planes, and salt domes in Oman's share of the Rub al Khali (the Empty Quarter).  You can also marvel at complex oil infrastructure while you're at it.

Grab a glimpse of Omani village life on this winding cruise through the lush plantations, emerald pools, and giant boulders of Wadi Tiwi in the Sultanate's Ash Sharqiyah region.

Home of the Majlis al Jinn (مجلس الجن), the second-largest known cave chamber in the world, plus some great examples of Oman's ancient 'beehive' tombs at Jaylah, the Selma Plateau is a desolate and sparsely populated stretch of high elevation planes that form part of Jabal Bani Jabir in the Ash Sharqiyah Region.

Abenteuerliche Rundfahrt mit Offroad-Fahrzeugen durch die Rimal Al Wahiba Wüste im Osten des Oman

A nice and easy off-roading side trip for anyone passing through Tanuf.  It offers some imposing cliffs, much dust, and the chance to explore the ruins of an ancient Omani village.

Accessible within a couple of hours from the Capital Area, the Sharqiyah Sands  (also known as the Wahiba) offer a genuine desert experience, plenty of excitement, and some stunning scenery.

Located within 40 minutes max of most of Muscat, this wadi goes by several names, but the one I think most expats in Oman know it as is 'Wadi Fanja'. It contains water pretty much all year and is great for splashing through in your 4x4.

With its wild, misty beaches, rocky reefs, great fishing, nesting turtles, and - bizarrely- a whole lot of rusty old Land Rover Defenders, Masirah only opened up to tourism in the 1990s. Today it remains an oftentimes spooky and desolate destination, but one that really refreshes the soul and is perfect for a long weekend of lazy camping, swimming, and fishing- or as a side trip if you're journeying along Oman's coast.

Even from Salalah, Wadi Shwaimiyah is a bit of a schlep to get to but it's a sound choice for a peaceful place to camp the night or stop at for a picnic lunch if you're transiting along the coastline, which is at its most rugged and spectacular around this point.