Misfat Al Abriyeen – everything you need to know

The ancient village of Misfat Al Abriyeen, also known as Misfah, gives you a taste of traditional life in Oman’s mountains, where people built their homes on the side of cliffs and farmed terraces fed by natural springs.

Misfat is a must-visit from Nizwa and more easily reached than the remote village of The Suwgra on Jebel Akhdar.

In this post I’m sharing why you should include it in your itinerary, whether you have one week in Oman or the luxury of more time.

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.

*This post contains affiliate links. If you click and buy something, I may earn some commission. This is at no extra cost to you but helps me cover the costs of running this website. See my privacy policy and disclosure policy for more information (links in footer).*

About Misfat Al Abriyeen – one of Oman’s beautiful mountain villages

Misfat is one of these places that appears untouched by time, aside from the freshly printed signs at the top pointing you towards places for food, drinks and free wifi.

Ignore these minor modern intrusions and you could imagine yourself in old Oman, before the days of electricity, tarmac roads and iced coffees. 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.

It’s only possible to explore the Misfat Al Abriyeen on foot. Leave your vehicle on the road at the top and wander freely through narrow alleys.

There are a smattering of family-run shops around the top of the village. Stop at these to find locally made honey, pottery and woven mats.

Further down the slopes you’ll walk through the crumbling walls of abandoned mud, stone and palm beam homes and past plantations fed by the gushing falaj. It’s possible to spot tiny fish zipping around in the calmer sections as if it they were in a goldfish bowl. Frogs also love Misfah for the damp, shady hiding places between the palms.

Most of Misfat’s population now lives in the modern houses across the valley and in the town of Al Hamra on the plateau below. They still farm the plantations and have turned their ancestral homes into guest houses.

Things to do

It’s possible to visit Misfat Al Abriyeen for a few hours or even stay the night. I’d recommend the latter if you have time. It’s a very special experience that gives you a unique opportunity to step back in time and see the village from the inside out.

I’ve shared some of the places I’ve stayed further down this post.

Here are the other things to do here:

Explore the maze-like alleyways

There are marked hiking routes through the village and into the wadi below, but you are free to explore much of the village however you’d like.

Get lost spotting beautiful Omani doors, follow the route of the falaj and enjoy the historic architecture. Be aware that lots of the surfaces are uneven and slippery whether they are wet or not.

There are a few places that are private residences – look out for signs. Visitors cannot enter the small mosque or swim in the bathing pools in the village.

Visit a roof top cafe at Misfah

You’ll spot Bun Alhisn cafe, formally Halwa Coffee, soon after arriving at the village. It is perched at the very top of the Hissen Al-Misfah hotel.

This cafe has incredible views over the village, valley and across to modern Misfah, and ice coffees to placate the most hot and bothered of explorers.

A bit further into the village is Rogan Cafe, named after the nearby castle.

If you are not staying in Misfat Al Abriyeen, these cafes give you a similar view to the ones you might have from the guest houses at the top of the village.

Find the Shuwa fire pit

Something you will find in many older Omani villages and towns is a fire pit. When I first saw this one I thought it was a well.

If fact, it is a deep hole used for cooking the famous Omani dish Shuwa, which is the centre-piece for Eid feasts. The fire is lit at the end of Ramadan and continues to burn throughout Eid.

Families wrap marinated meat, like goat, in palm leaves and put it in a hessian bag which is thrown to the communal fire pit to cook slowly over a number of days.

The result is tender and delicious. Find out more about Omani shuwa.

You can find the pit for yourselves by turning right down the hill in front of Misfat Hospitality Inn and follow the signs to Rogan’s cafe before you enter the plantation.

Meet the Misfah donkeys

With no vehicle access to the village and plantations, villagers use donkeys to transport goods up and down the hill.

These are very much working animals – they are not here for rides or entertaining visitors – but they are happy to have their photo taken.

See Misfat Al Abriyeen from afar

The best way to appreciate the village’s precarious location is from the opposite side of the valley (see the second picture in this post).

You can either hike down through Misfat and up the other side of the wadi, or there is a viewing platform in modern Misfat, which you can drive to.

Where to stay in Misfat Al Abriyeen

I’ve been lucky enough to stay in Misfat Al Abriyeen and experienced wonderful local hospitality on two occasions.

You’ll not find chain hotels here. Every one of the places to stay in Misfat is family-owned.

Some are ancestral homes complete with authentic decorations as well as 20th Century antiques like old radios and televisions. These date from the start of Omani’s renaissance when the late Sultan Qaboos led rapid modernisation in the Sultanate.

Here are the places I have stayed and can personally recommend:

Misfat Old House

An overnight stay in Misfat is wonderfully quiet, but if you want somewhere that’s not overlooked by the roof top cafes I can recommend Misfah Old House.

This is lower down the village’s winding staircases, so is a challenge to get to with luggage. Thankfully, the team at Misfah Old House will offer to carry your bags.

This Misfah guest house offers a complex of rooms set among the village’s plantations where the only overnight noise is the call of the frogs and the babble of the falaj.

Dinner and breakfast are included in your stay and served buffet-style in a large open-sided restaurant overlooking the valley. Expect traditional Omani dishes of cooked meats, rice, bread and salad in the evening, with dhal, eggs, cereals, yogurts and fruit in the morning.

I stayed in a double room with ensuite and a balcony. There are also rooms with shared bathrooms and rooms that sleep up to four people.

The accommodation is simply furnished with wooden shutters, old heavy doors and the all important air conditioning. Outside we had a table and chairs where we could sit and enjoy the sounds of nature.

You can book direct with Misfah Old House using the details on its Instagram profile or via booking.com.

Misfat Hospitality Inn

The second place I recommend staying in Misfah is Misfah Hospitality Inn. This accommodation is higher up in the village and overlooks many of the tumbledown buildings and roof top cafes.

The inn itself has been created from two family homes. Inside you climb a narrow staircase decorated with authentic heirlooms.

Off of the corridors there are guest rooms with thick wooden doors. At the top is the restaurant and access to rooms in the second house.

All rooms are ensuite and very comfortable. I stayed with a group of friends and the owner, Abdullah, made sure we were in rooms next to each other.

A traditional buffet dinner and breakfast are included in your stay with plenty of options for all tastes. My group of friends included vegetarians, vegans and gulten free diners, and there was something to fill everyone’s plate.

The view from the restaurant is superb – perfect for seeing the sunset and rise over the mountains.

Abdullah offers a talk about the village’s history each morning and has a museum where you can learn more about Misfat and its people.

You can book direct with Misfah Hospitality Inn using the details on its Instagram profile or via booking.com.

Both of these properties are very popular. If you find them fully booked there are a few other options in there village.

Tips for visiting Misfat Al Abriyeen

When you arrive at Misfah there are signs asking you to respect local customs:

And are some more handy things to know before your visit:

• The entrance to Misfat Al Abriyeen village is accessible by road. You don’t need a 4×4.
• Once parked at the top of the village you must explore on foot. There are lots of steps so come prepared with comfy shoes.
• If the roadside parking is full there is a car park further back along the valley (see the map below). Drop any passengers as close as you can to the village before going back to the car park. There isn’t a footpath along the road.
• You’ll need sun cream in the day and mosquito spray at night, particularly between September and April.
• Dress respectfully in clothing covering your shoulders and legs.
• If you are visiting and staying between November and March, bring a jumper for the evenings. You are 1,000m above sea level and it will get chilly.
• Don’t pick the fruit. The plantations are businesses.

Here are some pinned places to help you plan your visit to Misfat Al Abriyeen:

Where is Misfat Al Abriyeen?

Misfat is located in the foot hills of Jebel Shams, Oman’s highest mountain. It is a two and a half hour drive from Muscat International Airport and a 55 minute drive from the centre of Nizwa.

Final thoughts on Misfat Al Abriyeen

As you can probably tell, this is one of my favourite places in Oman and somewhere I’ve loved bringing our visiting friends. I could return again and again to enjoy its authentic Omani vibes.

It’s also worth saying that the village is becoming more touristy each time we visit and I know it has modernised considerably in the past decade. Check out this guide to the village from 2013 to see the differences between my pictures and the ones taken ten years before.

Having said that, if you want to visit a place of living history in Oman then this should still be high up your bucket list. It’s possible to visit Misfat Al Aberdeen as a day trip from Muscat or as part of a two or three day itinerary that includes Nizwa, Jebel Shams, Al Hoota Cave in Al Hamra and Bahla Fort.

If you have the chance to stay, do!

More reading before you go

• Beat the heat: what to do in Oman during the summer
• Bahla Fort – handy things to know about this UNESCO attraction
• Visiting Oman during Ramadan – what to expect in 2027
• Oman on a budget: how to save money on your trip
• Review: Wadi Al Arbeieen Resort – a hotel off the beaten track