The Rough Guide to Oman: Rough Guide Edition 1 (Rough Guides)

Covers all the important areasGood advice about what to see and what to missGood background and history/peopleAdvice re accommodation and restaurants

Having worked in Oman some years ago I wanted to read up on how things are today. I found it very interesting and would love to visit again. The guide covers the important sights and towns and has lots of useful information on travel, driving, public transport, shopping and eating etc. Has some colour photos but more would have been nice. There's even a short Arabic phrasebook at the back - just enough to get you into trouble!

My job is taking me out to Oman to live and work and I needed to get some idea of what to expect and this guide certainly gives the reader some great information.

Disclaimer: I am biased toward Lonely Planet as I find the maps and layout of Rough Guides considerably less convenient.That said, this Rough Guide is particularly bad, due to - in addition to the above - the fact that it misses out some of the country's best attractions.There are multiple wadis that you can swim down, emerge in caves etc, which it simply doesn't mention. Further, the introduction and summary of highlights is very unhelpful.Admittedly, as Oman is not backpacker/budget friendly, there is nothing the guide can do about this, but a bit more structure and recommendations on camping spots (you can wild camp in Oman), would be good.

Fairly comprehensive guide to a less visited country. Although Oman does have a lot to see and there's a lot to do there, there isn't in fact that much that a RG could write about the country (as opposed to, say, a book about nature and hiking or desert life). So it does its job fairly well describing the towns and cities and covering in less detail some of the activities the country offers, red tape, a bit about culture and history, etc.

It has loads of really useful information - if you are going on hols, or moving there its a useful resource.

Interesting source of background info on Oman but out of date on museums and similar attractions. However we knew this was likely when we bought it and we were able to check opening times and addresses on line which were often different to those in the book. An updated kindle version might have scored 4-5*

Always wanted to visit Oman - book tells you what you NEED to know! After reading it I REALLY want to go there!