r/geography • u/Necessary_Wing799 Geography Enthusiast • 14d ago

Oman - a country rarely spoken about. What's happening there? Discussion

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Oman is located in a area we heat about a lot for an array of reasons - there are many famous and newsworthy spots close by from dubai to Doha to Iran and Yemen...... what goes on in Oman? Let us know how life is here and any relevant info on its current state....

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u/AssumptionExtra9041 14d ago

Oman is stable, is relatively rich. It is not involved as much in international politics as its neighbors and it also does not prominently commit human right violations.

So, to keep it short: (almost) everything going on in the neighboring countries is also happening in Oman but to a much shallower degree.

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u/leonevilo 14d ago

only visited once a few years ago and it was a lot like i imagined the arabian peninsula to be when i was a kid, when i was only influenced by old tales and not current news.

it's wealthy, but not in your face rich, laid back, open to the world and the good life, and quite diverse. it has some of the oldest forts and ports in the world, with settlements dating back over 10k years and remnants of trade with east africa and the indus valley dating back almost as far. some surprisingly green areas (especially after monsoon) and pretty good diving.

even in salalah you won't realize there's a civil war going on next door in yemen (i realize most of the fighting is in western areas of yemen).

i understand it's not all roses, but if the rest of the gulf was more like oman this world would have a lot less problems.

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u/gattomeow 14d ago

The distances in the Arabian peninsula are really quite vast. From Muscat in Oman to Sa'naa in Yemen is about 2400 km.

To put that into context for Benelux people (many of whom lurk on Reddit), that's about the same distance as Rotterdam to Gibraltar.

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u/BayouByrnes 14d ago edited 13d ago

For those in the US, think Grand Rapids, Michigan (middle of the state) to Miami, Florida. 1,453 miles. Muscat to Sa'naa is 1,465 miles.

EDIT: To clarify, I just used google maps and driving routes to get these distances. These are not straight line numbers.

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u/planetmoo 14d ago

For those in Australia, think around the corner to Bruce's place along the Gympie track.

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u/krombough 13d ago

For those in Canada, it's one half of Ontario over. Which is a huge difference. You go from one frozen marshy bog, to another frozen marshy bog.

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u/Zoole 13d ago

For those in confusion, go fuck yourself and learn geography

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u/saint-monkee 13d ago

Gold my guy

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u/saint-monkee 13d ago

Gold my guy

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u/SureBlueberry4283 13d ago

For those on Reddit that’s 12,631,200 bananas of average length (19cm) 🍌

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u/JNNHNNN 13d ago

Thats a pretty big banana to me

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u/JustInChina50 13d ago

For those in England, it's the distance between its 2 biggest cities times 15.

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u/Saltiren 13d ago

Gympie

Is this pronounced gym-pie or like gimpy?

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u/bruhnoisesinfinite 13d ago

its pronounced like gimpy

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u/Mysticalnarbwhal2 14d ago

Holy shit that's massive. Also hell yeah, Grand Rapids rocks!

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u/Xxuwumaster69xX 14d ago

It's massive because it's off by over 300 miles. https://www.distancecalculator.net/from-sanaa-to-muscat

The actual distance between the two cities is under 1100 mi.

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u/gattomeow 14d ago

I was referring to the driving distance rather than as the crow flies

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u/Xxuwumaster69xX 14d ago

And that's misleading, especially since the distance from Rotterdam to Gibraltar is roughly 100mi over the distance from Musqat to Sanaa. You're more illustrating how much less straight the roads are than the actual distance.

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u/JunketAvailable4398 14d ago

For those in Australia, its just up the road.

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u/DG04511 13d ago

For those on the west coast, the distance would be similar to LA and Houston.

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u/Hot_Improvement9221 13d ago

For those in the west coast of the US, that’s about the same as driving from Portland, OR to Tucson, AZ.

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u/bakerstirregular100 13d ago

It is wild how the Mercator projection throws perception off so much

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u/BayouByrnes 13d ago

I had to look that up, but you're right.

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u/bakerstirregular100 13d ago

I forget anything right on the equator gets kinda squished.

Not just that the further stuff is stretched.

So it’s a double effect in this case

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u/nat3215 Geography Enthusiast 13d ago

Or one end of Texas to the other end of Texas, according to Texans

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u/Financial_Accident71 10d ago

i'll add how impossibllllleeee it would be to drive from Oman to Sana'a, its like pure desert with horrendously underrdeveloped pockets of Al Qaeda control throughout the desert until you hit Marib, which is a fascinating and extremely dangerous place filled with tribal violence, mass amounts of IDPs, few resources, and of course also AQAP, Then from there, there are impenetrable checkpoints blocking Marib to Sana'a road. Would be a fantastic adventure once Yemen stabilizes a bit!

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u/Patent6598 12d ago

Sorry I had to check that, thought it's a long distance you're quite far off. It's "only" 1700km , wichnis 700km less then you said.

Rotterdam to Gibraltar would be about 1900km, still.wuite far apart from the distance you're claiming the previous to be.

Rotterdam to Granada would be 1750 wich is a more relatable distance

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u/AssumptionExtra9041 14d ago

I never got the chance to visit it, so thanks for your insightss! I think Oman would be the first go-to place I'd visit in the middle east. Would totally agree on your conclusion :)

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u/crappenheimers 14d ago

I would strongly recommend Jordan as a first go to place in the middle east!

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u/deej312 14d ago

My barbers are all Jordanian and it's recently made my list. Seems like a fun place. How easy would it be to go to some of the other countries in the region? I'm pretty sure they don't have rail connecting them.

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u/PhileasFoggsTrvlAgt 14d ago

You'll have to fly, but flights are cheap and plentiful.

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u/crappenheimers 14d ago

Like the other person said, not easily by road but flights are cheap in the area. Israel is also incredible. I did a road trip to Jerusalem from Amman through the west bank and it's one of the most memorable experiences of my life. The Jordanian people are lovely.

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u/JadieRose 13d ago

Jordan and Oman are my two favorite places in the Middle East.

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u/gregorydgraham 13d ago

Flights from Turkey for sure

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u/Last-Customer-2005 13d ago

There are some good flight inclusive tour packages where you can go to a few countries and they are relatively well priced. I used Gate 1 and it was a we’ll organized seamless trip and affordable

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u/deej312 13d ago

That sounds perfect. Yeah I want to go to 3-5 countries in 10 days. It’s easy in Europe with the trains.

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u/young_twitcher 14d ago

What is the advantage of Jordan over Oman? Seems like everyone is going to Jordan which makes it less attractive.

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u/PhileasFoggsTrvlAgt 14d ago

Jordan has a tight cluster of absolutely amazing archeological sites that are managed as national parks and therefore very accessable. In addition to the biblical sites, the ancient cities of Jerash and Petra are worth the trip.

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u/young_twitcher 14d ago

From what I have seen online, there are so many tourists in Petra that you can barely move or see anything. So it doesn’t really encourage me to go there.

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u/PhileasFoggsTrvlAgt 14d ago

Petra is a huge site. At it's peak the city probably had a population over 20k. The entry road can be a bit tight at peak hours, but once it opens up to the city it's not crowded. If you climb to some of the high sites you'll only see a handful of people on the climb.

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u/gregorydgraham 13d ago

Petra in December is empty and quite pleasant. Buy a kaffiyeh at the store before you enter and the locals will look after you all day

I spent 2 solid days exploring it and didn’t see half of it, and I can say I’ve seen a rose red city half as old as time 😁

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u/RijnBrugge 13d ago

Eh, when I was there in 2014 it was super chill

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u/crappenheimers 14d ago

Wadi Rum is incredible, Amman is awesome and safe to visit, there are some castles there, Petra is hella cool. Just great places to visit, very adventurous. I dont really understand why you care if other people are going there a lot? It's a very cool place!

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u/young_twitcher 14d ago

I’m sure they re beautiful but often if you dig you can find places that are just as beautiful but with much fewer tourists. So I was wondering if it’s like this for Oman vs Jordan. I dislike touristy places because it ruins the atmosphere, you are supposed to be immersed in an exotic experience but it gets ruined when all you can hear is loud tourists from your own country and aggressive locals trying to sell you junk (for example).

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u/crappenheimers 14d ago

I completely understand your viewpoint but I do disagree I prefer places without tourists. But going to Petea (pretty busy but not crazy) and walking through a canyon city and seeing the massive facades was absolutely incredible. Though I will definitely say that the Bedouins in Petra were annoying as shit, luckily I had a high ranked Jordanian SOF guy to get them away from us.

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u/Suspicious_Ice_3160 13d ago

Well, I’m just lurking but you guys sure as hell sold me! I’ve been wanting to learn Arabic and planning a trip to Jordan would be just the kick I need! Any other recommendations or comments about going over there you would pass along as a white American? lol

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u/crappenheimers 13d ago

Nah it's a very friendly place. LOTS of English speakers. Definitely see if you can get a guide so you don't get swindled or anything. But the downtown areas of Amman are so cool. Roman amphitheater is really neat there.

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u/Cannoli_724 13d ago

Also Dead Sea.

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u/Last-Customer-2005 13d ago

I looooooved Jordan. Went there in a whim. Great history, kind and friendly people, safer than almost anywhere I’ve been (including Europe), great food, and a ton of instagram worthy views. Wadi rum and Petra are breathtaking. Go!

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u/crappenheimers 13d ago

One of us!! My only regrets were not visiting Karak Castle or Jarash while there. I actually got stuck while offloading in Wadu Rum when my radiator went out after cresting a dune a few miles from the nearest town (yes it was was bad as it sounded). And a kind lovely Jordanian/Bedouin gentleman immediately took to fixing our vehicle and repaired it. The story is a bit longer than that and is one of the msot surreal experiences of my life. And then he tried refusing the money I offered him.

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u/ElephantBalls69 13d ago

I recommend Syria.

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u/helic_vet 13d ago

I don't know about Jordan. A Jordanian soldier ambushed and killed American soldiers in 2016 and a large part of their population is of Palestinian origin who dislike or hate Americans due to America being a staunch ally of Israel. No thanks!

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u/gregorydgraham 13d ago

Jordan!

Petra is AMAZING

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u/[deleted] 14d ago

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u/farronsundeadplanner 14d ago

You two are friends and have never touched each other and will not do so in the future.

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Oman.html

Also, would research other women's experiences traveling there. It's probably safe, especially in tourist areas, but they have some similarities to their neighbors in this regard.

https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/middle-east-and-north-africa/middle-east/oman/report-oman/

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u/JessicaSmithStrange 14d ago

I've just looked through the disability section on the travel advisory, as well.

I'm feeling a bit anti social, so I think I'm going to go back to lurking now, because this has been asked and answered about 10 times in the space of 2 minutes.

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u/farronsundeadplanner 14d ago

Sorry if my comment was overly intense or anything. Just wanted to be clear on how careful some people need to be (unfortunately).

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u/JessicaSmithStrange 14d ago

It's not that.

I'm actually seriously unwell right now, and when I got something like 10 replies in quick succession, my brain locked up.

I should have checked on the disability situation anyway, as well, so I'm glad to have the advisories.

I'm a part time wheelchair user, so while something like the Parthenon can be made more accessible at a cost to historical authenticity, I do expect to have to get creative if I get to go anywhere, especially since I know the struggle with any sort of narrow spaces, because of my home town.

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u/leonevilo 14d ago

fair question, but i couldn't say for sure having travelled as a hetero couple. i seem to remember rumors about the previous sultan being gay and quietly lifting most sanctions against lgbt people. i'd guess there's a "don't ask don't tell" dl policy like in dubai, where it's nobodys business what you do behind closed doors, but outside you don't show affection.

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u/Physical_Foot8844 14d ago

The previous sultan was gay and educated in the UK iirc.

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u/sitbar 14d ago

As someone who has lived there for many years - I really don’t think it would matter at all. Obviously don’t be making out in public or whatever but no one’s gonna bat an eye at you two just existing

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u/JessicaSmithStrange 14d ago

That was more of a problem when we were teenagers, and were pda'ing all over the place,

We're a lot more mature nowadays, just because that's how it works.

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u/sitbar 14d ago

LOL I feel that, when you’re young and dumb you think differently. If you do ever end up visiting, and go to Muscat, please go to Al Kuwair and go to the Istanbali Turkish restaurant, some of the best food I’ve ever had.

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u/Keta-Mined 13d ago

I read some info from the State Department (US). It says homosexuality is illegal and can result in prison time.

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u/JessicaSmithStrange 13d ago

I appreciate that, and you.

I just needed to nuke the original question, because this got asked and answered about 50000 times in quick succession.

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u/One_Necessary3121 14d ago

The most recent Sultan was openly gay…..it’s probably a don’t ask don’t tell type of place

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u/GasHot4523 14d ago

its the fucking middle east use your brain

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u/JessicaSmithStrange 14d ago

I appreciate it, but for me to not ask would mean being prejudiced while throwing around accusations of prejudice, when I could just as easily check first.

Because I don't know the Omanis that well, I'd rather ask a stupid question, than be a bigot.

Both make me look stupid, but at least this way I can cover myself and at least attempt to avoid blatant hypocrisy.

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u/farronsundeadplanner 14d ago

I don't know why people are talking to you like you're dumb or something. It's a fair question and your reasons for asking are reasonable.

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u/JessicaSmithStrange 14d ago

I think it's literally because it's the middle east.

Us in the west have these expectations of it, and find it easier and safer to just go by the rule that every part is batshit crazy, if even considering heading out there.

To me it's like blaming me as a Welshie, for whatever deranged thing the French have done this week, based on accident of geography.

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u/Inside-Mammoth-4794 14d ago

How about just go as 2 females travelling just don’t mention lesbian sorry the world doesn’t care you and isn’t going to cater to your needs especially in an Arab country go be nice respectful but act if your normally straight it will hard for you to accept that but you will be visiting a foreign country abide by there rules omit your lesbian and just enjoy your time again nobody cares and arabs aren’t exactly inclusive in a nice you’d think they are

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u/JessicaSmithStrange 14d ago

I mean if that's the rule, that's the rule.

I can work with it, it would just mean going alone, and either leaving the other one here, or carting her off to Disney world.

And I know Saudi Arabs, and Iraqis, but I would rather ask the questions than make assumptions.

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u/konnektion 14d ago

Would you risk it?

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u/hissboombah 14d ago

Lol no, it’s illegal in Oman

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u/ebimbib 13d ago

I went diving there once, in Dibba, and I'll echo that sentiment. Unreal location for that.

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u/Agitated-Bat-9175 13d ago

I recently learned that every one in Oman is guaranteed a house too... There are some complications and issues that arise, but a notable fact.

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u/Comfortable-Slip2599 13d ago

Fuck it I think I'll just visit in a few years. 2025 will be Egypt and Senegal for me, but two weeks in Oman sounds pretty need for 2026.

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u/rorenspark 14d ago

Do you know if following Ibadi Islam helped with the stability?

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u/Maleficent_Resolve44 14d ago

They're just irrelevant really geopolitically. Not many people live there and they're less wealthy than the other gulf nations. Not much to do with ibadism I think. Qatar and the UAE are also internally stable nations but they have a much bigger impact on world affairs.

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u/Yvisna 14d ago

I wouldn’t say they are irrelevant, just little known to the general public. Oman is a very important country for that region because, being neutral with everyone, it is something like the place where other countries go to dialogue and reach agreements. That is, it is something like a diplomatic link, similar to what Switzerland is in Europe.

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u/Gudin 13d ago edited 13d ago

What you are describing is Qatar. Hezbollah, China, US all have embassies there. Oman has barely any foreign politics

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u/mogg1001 14d ago

Probably, by default it keeps them out of the Sunni-Shia dispute as they’re an uninvolved party.

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u/MoonMan75 14d ago edited 14d ago

It is kinda funny because the Ibadis are a off-shoot of the Khawarij, an absolutely insane sect of Islam which was responsible for starting tons of chaos in the early days of Islam. Imagine them as the original ISIS. They were despised by all the other Muslims and eventually crushed. However, they recruited from the impoverished and oppressed, so they have always stuck around in the background and manifest in different forms throughout Islamic and Arab history. There's some modern scholarly work which presents a different view of the Khawarij which is interesting.

Anyways, the Ibadis are a distinct sect, but in reality, they are almost identical to Sunni Muslims, with a few Shia influences. The main differences is political, the Ibadis have differing ideas on the caliphate and have some disputes with the Sunnis over esoteric Islamic philosophy.

But overall, I don't think following Ibadi Islam helped with the stability. Oman had a conflicts in the 1960s-1970s where thousands died. So it has a unstable history. The stability today just comes from Oman being pretty irrelevant overall, it likes to be a neutral party in most major conflicts, they are a dictatorship, and economically/social stable.

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u/solkov 14d ago

I think the policies of Sultan Qaboos to basically stay out of conflicts helped.

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u/Living_Debate9630 13d ago

Do these people consider themselves descendants of Khwarij or is that a Sunni interpretation? As far as I know, they call themselves ahl ul haq wal istiqama

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u/MoonMan75 13d ago

They consider themselves the descendants of a moderate branch and they denounce the violent branches.

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u/Living_Debate9630 13d ago

Interesting. Thanks 🙏🏽

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u/Calimt 14d ago

What did Avicci see in Muscat that made him……

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u/IcyBlackberry7728 14d ago

The reason for that is Oman is not geopolitically important. If it was, it would have been bombed and smeared in the media many times over likes It’s neighbor

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u/XVince162 14d ago

What about sitting right on the straight of Hormuz?

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u/IcyBlackberry7728 14d ago

The straight of Hormuz is largely controlled by Iran and the west doesn’t want any smoke with Iran (at least not yet, although this could change within the next few weeks unfortunately).

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u/The-Copilot 14d ago

You got that backward. Iran knows not to mess with trade moving through the strait of Hormuz because the last time they did, the US sunk half their navy in 8 hours during Operation Praying Mantis. This is part of the reason Iran uses proxies to do its bidding.

The US has bases on the Persian Gulf in Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, and Bahrain. They also have more bases in the region to support those bases, specifically in Diego Garcia, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Djibouti, and Turkey.

This is also just what the US itself has in the region.

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u/bennyblanco19 13d ago

Oman is very geopolitically important. They keep very close relations with the UK. The UK trained the police and military and supported them in the Dhofar war.

The Feather Men is a great book that mentions some of the history albeit from a fictional perspective.

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u/catalanboy95 14d ago

It is fairly commites in international politics actually, for example taking in a mediator role between Iran and KSA. So your statement is not that true.

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u/Duran64 14d ago

Doesnt prominently commit human rights violations???? Its one of the largest slave trading nations on the planet

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u/BCNJ 14d ago

Also they have lovely turtle beaches.

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u/Flamadin 14d ago

And I think any male citizen can go to any college in the world, paid for by their government.

Source: had a roommate from Oman at the University of Miami.

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u/TransCapybara 14d ago

Can confirm, Oman is pretty chill.

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u/maxxim333 14d ago

Accurate except for the last statement. Yemen borders Oman and is a clusterfuck of turmoil

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u/snootsintheair 13d ago

Its leaders absolutely fund terrorism and miseducation abroad. Don’t pretend this is some shining beacon of world peace.

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u/DeniseReades 13d ago

it also does not prominently commit human right violations

I just love how you phrased this. Like, "They're definitely violating human rights but they do it quietly, without parades, and they keep their fanfare to acknowledged holidays.

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u/chaimsoutine69 13d ago

You forgot “awful “

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u/98_Constantine_98 13d ago

Their neighbors are either in horrifying forever civil wars (Yemen), or are other gulf states building massive stupid vanity projects, but Oman sounds like they are actually investing the money they have into good long term things, decent urban planning and traditional architecture. I'm sure there's some horrible human rights violations I'm ignorant of but at least in comparison to their peers they seem stable, geopolitically introverted, and generally making wise decisions.

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u/Initial_Barracuda_93 13d ago

How’s its education programs? Is industry more privatized or are there extensive public programs

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u/2Fawt2Walk 13d ago

It’s to the Middle East what Uruguay is within Latin America?

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u/seran_goon 12d ago

When you're in an unstable region but you're just a chill guy

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u/[deleted] 14d ago

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u/PosterOfQuality 14d ago

it also does not prominently commit human right violations

They didn't say Oman has never committed human rights violations

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u/[deleted] 14d ago

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u/PosterOfQuality 14d ago

Because the person who wrote that was clearly talking in the present tense?

Every country on the planet has a dark history

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u/[deleted] 14d ago

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u/salcander 14d ago

Wow, so you bring up the kafala system in oman, which is an absolute shit example because they basically have NO kafala system in comparison with he other gulf states.

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u/PosterOfQuality 14d ago

I have no idea what that is. I know very little about Oman. I'm just explaining why it's a bit ridiculous to respond to someone who was clearly talking in the present tense with "they only stopped doing slavery in 1970". That's 54 years ago lol

If you had initially made your argument about some human rights violations that is occurring today I'm sure you wouldn't have got downvoted

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u/[deleted] 14d ago

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u/MotorProteins 14d ago edited 14d ago

I'm really not trying to be obtuse, and I am not going to pretend I know what's is going on in Oman, but the wiki you linked has a tab for 7 different countries and none of them were Oman.

Edit to add, while I'm guessing the Kafala system is fucked up in ways I don't understand at face value it doesn't look too different than having to get your employer to sponsor your visa in the United States

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u/Next_Snow9064 13d ago

Why dont we talk about the massive amounts of slavery in the us and the fact that they currently enslave prisoners? Moron 😂

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u/Rossmci90 14d ago

Almost all countries have a dark history. Humans were pretty shitty to other humans for a very long time.

We're talking about Oman now.

Your comment is like seeing a post saying that modern Germany is fairly progressive and a good place to visit, and replying that Germany murdered 6 million Jews.

Its not really relevant to visiting modern Germany.

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u/MisterMejor 14d ago

Were shitty? Since when did it stop?

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u/[deleted] 14d ago

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u/MotorProteins 14d ago

I'll say again I don't know the state in Oman, but slavery was abolished 150 years ago in the United States and we are still healing lots of societal and systemic damage. It takes a long time to heal from such deep wounds.

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u/StrawberryComplete58 14d ago

The USA has slavery to this very day, no wonder wounds can't heal.

Read the 13th in full

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u/MotorProteins 14d ago

Yes I understand there is a prisoner loophole in the 13th (that I don't agree with). But you are also kinda making my point. It took 100 years until the civil rights movement. And it's been 60 years since then. Things get better slowly.

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u/JohnnyG30 14d ago

The whataboutism in the thread is making my head spin. “But..but…what about the other thing that is loosely correlated?!”

This mindset is why politics are a complete dumpster fire these days. I have no energy for these types of clowns anymore. Nothing they say is in good faith. It’s all shitty set ups to some unimpressive “got ya” moment while completely missing the point being made to them. It’s exhausting. Don’t waste your time, man.

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u/StrawberryComplete58 14d ago

It's not a loophole, it's a feature. Have you ever wondered why the US has the most people imprisoned? It's specifically so they can lease oligarchs slave labour.

Frankly calling the consistent enslavement of minorities a "loophole" is ethically repugnant.

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u/spaceinvader421 14d ago

They said “prominently”, Oman likes to keep their human rights violations on the DL

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u/AssumptionExtra9041 14d ago

Absolutely! As I said, it is quite progressive, especially in contrast to its neighbors! Nonetheless, there's quite something left to catch up in other fields such as woman rights for instance. Still, I highly appreciate that Oman is constantly improving in those terms.

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u/[deleted] 14d ago

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u/[deleted] 14d ago

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u/LikeABundleOfHay 14d ago

They're ahead of the USA who haven't abolished slavery yet.