Oman is a unique country known for its beautiful mountains, stunning wadis, magical desert, extremely friendly people and the best of it is wild camping. In Oman, wild camping is allowed almost everywhere, which definitely brings you unforgettable nights in the desert, on beautiful beaches and high in the mountains. Oman is a very safe country, the locals are extremely friendly and in no wayannoying.We have written some tips and suggestions to make your camping in Oman easier.
Where to camp in Oman?
There are no official campsites in Oman that we are used to (shower, electricity, etc.). Camping is allowed almost everywhere, unless you are on a private property. If you are camping close to the locals, ask them for permission and they definitelywont refuse you, they will probably invite you for some coffee and dates.
Where not to camp?
Although camping is allowed almost everywhere, there are two areas where camping is not allowed or bertter to avoid for your own safety.
Camping is forbiddenin the area (beaches) of Ras Al Jinz Nature Reserve, where turtles come to hatch their eggs at night at the beach. The reserve also has its own guards who regularly go to the beaches to check in the evening. If you set up your tent too close to the beach, they will ask you to move somewhere else. We set up our tent about 100m from the beach and there was no problem.
Also, for your safety, it is not recommended that you place your tent in a wadi. Although these are very nice places for camping, they can also be very dangerous on rainy days as they fill up with water very fast. A little caution is also necessary in setting up a tent near the sea, as the difference between the high tide and the low tide in Oman is quite high.
Oman camping, Ras Al Jinz
Is wild camping safe?
Oman is known as a very safe country, so wild camping is also safe. It may be that the locals approach to you and talkwith you, and maybe some goat or a donkey may pass by. We only felt uncomfortable and scared a little only for the first night in the tent, as we heard footsteps in the middle of the night, but it turned out to be just a donkey who went home a little late.
What do I need for camping?
For camping in Oman you need basic camping equipment that you can bring from home, or you can also buy it in Oman for a very good price. All the equipment you need can be bought at large supermarkets such as LuLu and Carefour. We brought our camping equipment with us from home (tent, tent mat, sleeping bag, pillows, burner), rest of the stuff, like gas for burner and some plates and spoons we bought in Oman.
For camping you will need:
- tent
- sleeping bag
- sleeping mat
- burner and gas
- knife, forks, plates, cookware
- pillow
- headlamp
- tent floor mat (it came in very handy as the ground in Oman is covered with sharp and pointed stones that could penetrate the tent floor)
- baby wet wipes, camp shower, larger bottle of water (on the day of departure we found out that our camp shower was broken and we were forced to leave it at home. In the end we found that larger bottles were more convenient, camp shower would only be in the way)
Oman camping, Wahiba desert
Can I buy camping equipment in Oman?
Of course. Believe it or not, Omanis love camping too, so you won’t have any problems with buying any camping equipment. In their shopping centres like Lulu and Carefour, you will get everything you need for camping at a great price.
You can get:
- tent (price depends on size and number of people, prices range from 5 OMR – 20 OMR)
- sleeping bag (a thin sleeping bag costs from OMR 5 to OMR 10 for a thicker one)
- gas bomb (different types of bombs are available and prices range from 0.50 OMR. Bombs can be purchased at almost every store and gas station)
- gas cooker (you can choose from those that are winding up on a bomb (7-15 OMR) and real gas cookers (10 OMR)
- knifes forks, spoons, cookware (you will get all of the above. In Carefour, we found a plastic set for 1 OMR that contained spoons, forks, cups, plates and bowls. You will pay between 2-4 OMR for a basic cookware)
- sleeping mat (the only thing we didn’t find was a wide variety of sleeping mats. We only found a thin beach foam mat and inflatables air mattress)
- air pump (3-5 OMR)
- camping light (Charges on usb, 1 OMR)
- sleeping pillow (inflatable 1 OMR)
- firewood (we noticed that they used to buy camp firewood in the store, 2-3 OMR for a sack)
Oman camping equipment
Can I rent camping equipment?
You can also rent camping equipment and even a roof tent in Oman. The rental price depends on the provider and the number of rental days.
- rental of full camping equipment = 7.5 OMR / day
- roof tent rental = installation charge 50 OMR + 11 OMR / day
- roof tent rental + car = Toyota Prada + tent 50 OMR / day (price depends on rented car)
Our camp sites locations
For planning the perfect wild camping start it with choosing of the apropriate place to set up your tent. We set up our tent in the beautiful places below:
- Muscat (Yiti beach) = N46.30807 E15.34538
- Bimmah Sinkhole (on the beach) = N23.06436 E59.06258
- Wadi Shab (nearby beach) = N22.84835 E59.23969 (we found our place on a quiet beach where the resort is located), you can use theirs outside shower if you ask
- Ras Al Jinz = N22.42819 E59.83439
- Wahiba Sands = N22.43860 E58.67661 (one of the most beautiful nights in Oman. With our car, we drove nearly 10 km inland and set up our tent at the foot of the dunes. Drive into the desert if you have a 4 × 4 car only)
- Nizwa = N22.92313 E57.48264
- Jebel Akhdar = N22.84835 E59.23969
- Jebel Shams = N23.20104 E57.20148 (You can camp on the top, just steps away from the edge of the mighty canyon. Remember that you are sleeping at 2000 meters and the nights at this altitude are colder (November, 5ºC)
Oman camping, beach near Tiwi
Oman camping, near Nizwa
Oman camping, canyon Jebel Shams
Some other tips…
- buy water in Muscat for a day or two, as almost every village has water taps where you can pour it. The water is potable and in most cases cooled as well, since they have refrigeration units installed
- at the beginning of your journey you do not need to make too much food supplies. There are supermarkets in all major cities, and you will find many smaller markets and fruit and vegetable shops along the way
- find camping spot while there is still daylight
- if you are camping on Jebel Shams and Jebel Akhdar, you should also wear warmer clothes, as temperatures drop to 5-10 degrees at night
- for wild camping we recommend renting a 4 × 4 car. With an ordinary car, you will be very limited in your choice of camping space and your entire trip to Oman
- one of the better things about camping is that you can also light a campfire (with caution). You can buy the wood in supermarkets or pick it up on the way, which is definitely recommended for camping on Jebel Shams and Jebel Akhdar, since there is hard to find some wood
- for charging electronics (camera, computer, etc.), we had a 12V / 220V converter with us. You can also charge the phones on a USB car charger
- you can also use the IOverlander mobile application to find suitable camping sites, where we also added our coordinates.
