Nizwa is one of Oman’s oldest cities and was once its capital. So it’s no surprise to find it on the majority of Oman itineraries. But what are the must-visit places? In this post I’m sharing our tried and tested things to do in Nizwa and close by.
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But before the good stuff, I'd like to thank you for visiting Oman Wanderlust and also encourage you to join our Facebook group Oman Unpacked. It's a community to get even more personal recommendations from visitors and expats who love Oman.
1. Visit Nizwa Fort
One of Oman's best known forts, Nizwa has a lot of offer visitors in terms of impressive battlements, incredible mountain views and reams of history.
Start your tour by climbing the fort tower itself and carefully crossing the man traps before going deep into the neighbouring castle to learn about the life and times of Nizwa's Imam rulers.
Don't miss the ancient water pump and date harvesting equipment in the walled gardens, and definitely sample traditionally baked Omani bread slavered in liquid cheese and honey.
Find out more about visiting Oman's famous Nizwa Fort including costs, opening times and accessibility.
2. See Nizwa goat market
For a glimpse into authentic Omani culture, the Nizwa Friday Goat Market is a must.
Watched normally reserved Omanis transform into passionate traders, parading their livestock around a concrete ring while buyers inspect teeth and bellies before haggling for the best price.
This isn't a tourist attraction - it's a genuine trading post that's operated for centuries, just now under a corrugated iron shed instead of a palm frond roof.
Find out more about this essential Nizwa experience including plenty of tips for seeing it yourself.
3. Shop at Nizwa Souq
If you want a souvenir of your time in Oman Nizwa's sprawling souq is the place to pick one. Of course, browsing is welcome too.
This Omani market is split into sections selling fresh produce, dried fruit and spices, pottery, antiques and silver.
The food souq is used by locals so if you do want to pick up a snack then you can expect to pay a reasonable price.
Don’t miss the opportunity to try dozens of varieties of dates in the Date Souq. There's also spices and Omani sweets.
Find out more about what to buy and what to browse at Nizwa Souq.
4. Try halwa
As well as trying dates at the souq, you must take this golden opportunity to taste the many different types of Halwa.
This traditional Omani treat is made with ghee, cornstarch, sugar and water, then flavoured spices, rose water and nuts. The best way to describe it for Western pallates is as a kind of thick, spiced jelly.
Traditionally it is shared at the end of a meal as a sweet. Everyone uses a small spoon in their left hand to cut off a piece. You pick that potion off of the spoon with your right hand and place it into your mouth so the spoon can be used again without 'double dipping'.
Traders in Nizwa Souq provide spoons to customers to test their wares before you buy. Purchase some in a sealed plastic container and it will travel well.
5. Go on a cart ride around the old city
One of the most accessible things to do in Nizwa is to book a golf cart ride around the old city. We have done this with visiting parents. It's the perfect way to have a guided tour of the ancient irrigation system and city walls without breaking a sweat.
A few different routes and tour durations are available. We used Nizwa Tourism Carts who offer tours with a combination of live information from your guide and multimedia presentations in the cart while you are travelling around.
Find out more and book Nizwa Tourism Carts.
6. See traditional dancing
Visit Nizwa on a Friday, Saturday or public holiday and you have a good chance of seeing a traditional sword dance in and around Nizwa Fort and souq.
The Razha is an artistic re-enactment of a sword battle. Two rows of men dance forward and back while singing folk songs about war, friendship and national pride.
7. Visit Oman Across the Ages Museum
This is our favourite museum in Oman, but this is a bit unfair to the others because it is also the newsiest and most hi-tech.
Oman Across the Ages Museum sets the scene for any visit to Oman. It shares natural history spanning millions of years, the rise of the country's religious and political leaders, and it's aspirations for the future.
If you haven't had time for the National Museum in Muscat, you must fit in a visit here.
It's also one of our recommended things to do on the way to Nizwa from Muscat.
Find out more about visiting this museum just outside Nizwa.
8. Nizwa Grand Mall for a shopping fix including water park
If you're in need of some modern retail therapy Nizwa Grand Mall has more than 65 shops. We have often used the supermarket here to top up our camping supplies during road trips between Jebel Shams and Wahiba Sands.
There's also a cinema and water park next door if you want to dodge the heat.
Things to do near Nizwa
Nizwa is a hub for visiting many of northern Oman's mountain highlights. Here are some of our favourites:
9. Al Hoota Cave
There are many caves in Oman's Hajar Mountains including one of the largest caverns in the world. But the biggest show cave in Oman (and the Arabian Peninsular) is Al Hoota.
You can explore 500 metres of the cave on a guided tour that takes between 45 minutes and an hour. Guides speak both Arabic and English. For the more adventurous, you can go on a caving tour.
Find out more about Al Hoota Cave and why it's worth a visit as part of your Nizwa Itinerary.
10. Bahla Fort
Positioned high on a hill overlooking an oasis of palms, Bahla Fort is everything I expected of an Omani fortress designed to both protect and intimidate.
In fact, I have enjoyed visiting here more than Nizwa Fort!
What it lacks in information boards it more than makes up for in authenticity - it feels like the governor and his staff have just moved out.
It's also much less busy and has nowhere near the number of visitors drawn to the tourist hubs of Muttrah in Muscat and neighbouring Nizwa. Yet!
Read my guide to visiting Bahla Fort.
11. Misfah Al Abriyeen
Misfat is one of these places that appears untouched by time. It's a small mountain village and plantation that you can only explore on foot, helping you imagine yourself in old Oman.
There has been some kind of settlement here for at least 1,500 years, which is when Rogan Castle, which sits above the village, was built by the Persians.
The village itself is said to be at least 500-years-old but the falaj irrigation system that feeds the terraces of fruit trees is even older.
Find out more about visiting this beautiful village less than an hour from Nizwa.
12. Beevibe tombs
Just over an hour outside Nizwa it is possible to see part of what UNESCO calls 'one of the most complete and well preserved ensembles of settlements and necropolises from the 3rd millennium BCE worldwide'.
Above the town of Al Ayn, in the foothills of Jebel Misht, there are 21 miraculously well preserved round tombs that date back 5,000 years. This was when the population centres of Bat, Al Khutm and Al Ayn were on the cross roads of a trading route.
The tombs are made using local limestone and are thought to have been used for multiple funerals over the centuries.
Amazingly, it's possible to walk right up to these ancient monuments. We observed them from Al Gahfat Road on the way to and from Wadi Damm.
13. Wadi Damm
If you’re into geology this place is special and worth the hour and a half drive from Nizwa.
The first time we visited there was a team of German geology students inspecting the wadi gorge. You can also find petroglyphs in the main parking area. These are ancient pictures of people, horses and camels scratched into the cliffs.
From the car park you walk into the valley and up a small set of steps over the dam. We followed our noses from here as there are no way markers. We had to slide down rock faces on our bottoms and scramble over rocks to reach the first two pools.
This is one of the more challenging wadis we have visited in Oman. It is possible to explore further but you have to either scramble up a waterfall with a rope or back track and follow a rough path up the side of the cliff.
The reward, after a bit more hiking and scrambling, is a magical set of pools.
More essential reading before visiting Oman
As well as reading my guides about what you need to know about driving in Oman and what to pack, I can recommend buying the Lonely Planet guide to Oman, UAE & Arabian Peninsular.
I bought this before our move here and found it invaluable as an introduction to the country and culture.
