Traveling to Nizwa Fort and the Old City

Finding Gulf Culture in Nizwa

Traditional Arab culture in the Gulf is slowly dying. Moving from spacious nomadic tents to glistening metal skyscrapers, the residents of the UAE and Qatar have exchanged their home in the shifting sands of the desert for a life of luxury in some of the most luxurious cities in the entire world. Although they still don their traditional dishdasha, local Emiratis and Qataris are found more often in the extravagant malls rather than the backs of camels.

Being the 21st century, no one would expect Gulf Arabs to still be confined to the scorching hot deserts. But as these countries built their shining utopias in the middle of the orange sand, they forgot to preserve a lot of what makes their people so special. While in Dubai nomadic traditions can only be found in the museums. In the neighboring country of Oman you can find many castle towns and desert outposts that transports visitors to a bygone time. The most famous of these age-old heritage cities is Nizwa.

No trip to Oman would be complete without visiting the Sultan Qaboos Mosque. You can check out more here!

Getting to Nizwa From Muscat

Before you can begin exploring the sun-baked forts and lively souqs of Nizwa you will first have to figure out how to get to this oasis in the middle of the Omani desert. There are many castles and crumbling ruins found throughout Oman, but many are unreachable unless you have your own car. For backpackers, this will turn out to be a major problem. Nizwa, however, is the most accessible out of all of the deserted castle towns in Oman.

From the capital of Muscat, the easiest and cheapest way to get to Nizwa is with the Mwasalat Bus Company. From the main bus terminal in Ruwi, you can find services to Nizwa ranging from 3.9 Omani Rial (10.90 USD) to 7.5 Omani Rial (19.48 USD). The trip only takes about 2 hours, but the bus station in Nizwa is roughly 9km away from the old city. Since there are hardly any hotels around the fort, you will probably be stuck taking a taxi into Nizwa every day.

Thinking of traveling to Dubai or Kuwait? You can find my complete review of the City-States of the Gulf here!

Exploring Nizwa’s Souq

At the end of the day, Nizwa’s historic fort is just a monument to the past. When entering its walls you will find nothing that represents Omani life, only a reminder of what once has been. The real soul of Nizwa can be found in its lively souqs or markets. On Friday’s the old city is teeming with life. Farmers and herders from throughout the country arrive in Nizwa to sell their wares and livestock.

Early on Friday mornings, the Nizwa animal market is the best place to see age-old Gulf traditions come alive. As early as 6 am, locals will begin parading their goats and cattle around the market. By 9:30, the entire market will start to shut down. It is not the animals, necessarily, that will make you fall in love with Nizwa. But the traditional attire, lively market, and witnessing a culture that has been preserved for generations is an aspect of Arab culture which is close to dying out.

What really puts Nizwa on the map is the goat market. Read more on the Livestock Souq here!

The Nizwa Fort

While the souq and livestock market is teeming with life, Nizwa Fort stands tall as the most photogenic and iconic site in the entire city. Without the markets, the walled city would be nothing more than a hollow shell. Without the towering fortress, however, you would lose that authentic Arabian feel which is on the verge of extinction. With its looming walls and orange bastions, no matter where you find yourself in the old city, the cannons poking out from the stockades acts as the perfect landmark to navigate your way through Nizwa.

Open from 9 am to 4 pm Saturday to Thursday and 8 am to 11 am on Friday, you can easily spend hours wandering all the secret passageways, fortifications, and royal chambers that makeup Nizwa Fort. From the main circular fortress, you will be given panoramic views of the surrounding city. With little to no traces of metal buildings or concrete houses, it is easy to imagine you are living in the days of nomadic traders and majestic caravans.

While in the Middle East you are sure to be tempted to venture out to the Pyramids! Read more on the Pyramids of Giza here!

Nizwa After Hours

During the day you are probably going to be one of the few souls wandering the streets of Nizwa. Especially during the summer months, local Omanis do not emerge from their houses until well into the evening. Only the foreign tourists are foolish enough to venture out into the sweltering heat during the unbearable months on June and July.

As the sun begins to set, only then will you begin to see Omanis donning their dishdashas and niqabs begin to wander the streets of Nizwa. Much like every other Arab country in the Middle East, most families make a beeline to the many jewelers and gold shops that make up the city. Other than seeing the city come alive and the lights shining on the iconic Nizwa Fort, you will find little to do after hours other than people-watching and wandering the city streets without the sun beating down on you.

For a real adventure, you should look at traveling to Iraqi Kurdistan. Read my complete guide to Erbil here!

Oasis in the Desert

The time of Nizwa being a center for Islamic learning and commerce is long gone. Although camels can still be found being herded into the bustling souqs and traditional craftsmen display their wares in the markets, the age of being a hub in the desert is in the past.

The importance of Nizwa is not found in its coffers or universities, but in the traditional ways of life that are lost elsewhere in the Arab world. There is nowhere else in the Gulf where you can get such a candid look at local culture than in the markets in Nizwa. Little do the farmers and traders who make the weekly journey to the Friday market know, they are in fact preserving traditions and culture which are on the brink of extinction.