7-Hour Private Nizwa and Jabal Akhdar Tour with Birkat Al Mouz

The tour starts in the morning as you drive towards Nizwa. Nizwa was the capital of Oman during the Al Yaruba Dynasty. You will visit the famous Nizwa Souq (Market), where a wide variety of vendors offer their goods in the streets of the souk. Here, you can find vegetables, pottery, jewellery, handicrafts, Omani sweets (halwa), dates, spices, and souvenirs, all sold in authentic old market halls that few places can boast.

Especially interesting is the Friday cattle market, when the locals come to sell their goats, cattle, sheep, and chickens in a circus-style open marketplace.

Please note: if you stay in Muscat and want to catch the cattle market, you have to start at 06:00 AM, so please mention it in the special request form after booking, and we will message you back.

Next to the souq is Nizwa Fort and castle. The fort was built in 1649, and the castle in 888. The fort is a museum today and offers splendid views of this ancient town and the surrounding mountains.

You can walk around this impressive fort and castle with its many passage rooms. The fort is an architectural testimony to the economic and military achievements of the early Yaruba dynasty from the mid-17th century. It was a military stronghold designed to withstand even the strongest attacks of its time. Even along the corridors, many traps were laid to deter any intruders who might have penetrated the defences.

From Nizwa, drive up to Jebel Akhdar, also known as "Green Mountain." It is considered one of the most scenic areas in Oman and is part of the Hajar Mountain Range.

Jebel Akhdar is so called because of the green terraced gardens surrounding the villages as you proceed to the Saiq Plateau. This place can be reached only by donkey. For hundreds of years, a variety of fruits such as pomegranates, apricot, apple, olive, grape, rose, peaches, and walnut have grown here. There are also interesting walks in Wadi Bani Habib, Shrejah, Al Ain, and Al Aqur.

After Green Mountain, visit Birkat Al Moz. It has a large Falaj system that supplies water to date palms and vegetables for many orchards, and it is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage and Culture site.

It is worth spending some time walking and discovering the old part of the village. Then drive back to Muscat.