Masirah Island - the paradise on Earth

Masirah island is the largest land in Oman, off the east cost of the mainland, in the Arabian Sea. It is 95kn long north-south and between 12-14km wide with a population estimated at 12 000. To reach the ferry in Shannah it takes roughly 6 hours driving from Muscat and the ferry will take you to the main village of Hilf.

It is still very much off the main tourism charts - there is a nice (and licensed) resort and few guesthouses but during the day while exploring the island, we had it pretty much to ourselves. Monsoon has an impact here as well and temperature is significantly lower during the summer compared to Muscat. 

We had two nights here and we spent our full day driving around the island and just went off to the beach wherever we saw something we liked. We did a little snorkeling as well. The west side (towards the mainland) is less windy and the sea is more calm, while the east side is more wild.

The beach is incredible here basically everywhere. And trash was less of a problem than elsewhere.

Wilde life is also super interesting - we saw big birds, flamingos, turtles nestle here and we have seen countless crabs!

Snorkeling was enjoyable just right off the coast. There are many soft corals like cabbage and brain corals. And the coast was littered with shells!

This is the south most point of the island.

West coast is more desert like.

We also ventured to the interior and got lost - we tried to find the highest point but got lost in the wadis and turned back.

 Sunset was stunning.

Hilf gives a glimpse of traditional village life.

On the way to Shannah locals were producing salt - cars stopped to buy, one sack was 1 OMR.

On the way to the island we took the cross country road which is slightly faster but super boring. On the way home we opted for the coastal road which is like 1 hours longer but so much nicer and more interesting!

Ras al Ruwais - dramatic coastline