8 things you didn’t know about Oman, a country with no trains or trees

Neither as glitzy as Dubai nor as known for its history as Jordan, Oman could be described as that rarest of things - a part of the Middle East that, relatively speaking, has neither fame nor notoriety. Unappreciated? Underrated? Perhaps both these things. But today (November 18) is its national day - which is surely a fair enough reason to shine a light onto a semi-mysterious package. Through the following splendid facts.

1. It is safe to visit
Once upon a time this would have seemed an obvious statement with which to begin a travel feature. But such have been the problems in the Middle East in the last five/25/100 years (delete according to how broad a view of the region you are taking) that the fact Oman has not been popping up in "Breaking News" feeds for all the wrong reasons is a point worth mentioning. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advice page for the country is refreshingly short on warnings and maps largely coloured in red, and states that "most visits to Oman are largely trouble free." Splendid.

2. Despite some of its neighbours

In terms of location, Oman is a bridge between two distinct halves of the Middle East. In the north, it rubs shoulders with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) - very much a glittery, tourism-facing section of the region, even if Dubai is not one of the emirates Oman shares a border with (it does, though, link arms with Fujairah, Sharjah and Ras Al-Khaimah). Turn to the south-west, however, and the mood changes. Here, Oman keeps company with war-torn humanitarian disaster-zone Yemen, and the Middle East's glowering Big Brother, Saudi Arabia. The FCO does not specifically advise that you steer clear of these lower frontiers - but then, you probably don't need telling that.

3. It is a play in three acts
Unlike many countries, which exist as singular entities which sit wholly within clear borders, Oman does not manage to keep all its stuff in one bag. Or, to phrase that another way, there are three distinct bits of it splodged across the Arabian Peninsula. There is the main chunk, obviously - which juts out into the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea like an elbow. But there is also the Musandam Governate, an exclave which sits at the north tip of the peninsula - above the UAE, removed from the rest of the country. Then there is Madha - a tiny pocket of land which is part of the Musandam Governate, but separate from it - lying halfway between the exclave and Oman proper, surrounded on all sides by the UAE. Confusing? Yes. That's what Google maps are for.

4. Zighy Bay is a beach beauty
The Musandam Governate may be cut off from the rest of Oman, but it has one of the country's biggest enticements for visitors. Pitched on the east side of the landmass, where the Strait of Hormuz slips into the Gulf of Oman, this mountain-framed sliver of beach and rolling waves has quietly become one of the Middle East's best options for a sun-and-sea escape. Where? Well, perhaps the feted Six Senses Zighy Bay resort. Tropical Sky (01342 886 223; tropicalsky.co.uk) offers four-night stays at this five-star retreat from £1,299 per person (based on trips in May), including flights and breakfast.

5. The capital is a fascinating prospect
Muscat likes to portray itself as one of the Middle East's most cultural cities. It's a fair point. If the National Museum (omantourism.gov.om) - which covers the country's role as a seafaring hub going back to the sixth century BC - does not snare your interest, then the Royal Opera House (rohmuscat.org.om/en), which opened in 2011 as one of the planet's foremost new structures purpose-constructed for the art form, just might. 

6. It's home to the world's third longest-serving monarch
Muscat is also home to the Al Alam Palace - the ceremonial home of Qaboos bin Said Al Said. And who is he? He's the sultan of Oman, and has been since July 23 1970. This means he has been on the throne for more than 47 years - an impressive regal innings which currently ranks as the third lengthiest on the planet. Only Hassanal Bolkiah, the sultan of Brunei, and our own Elizabeth II, have been crowned for longer.

7. In origin, Muscat is very old
It has probably been on the map (as mentioned in fact 5) since the sixth century BC - and was certainly around in the second century AD, because the Greco-Roman geographer Ptolemy wrote about it, referring to it as Cryptus Portus (the Hidden Port).

8. But it is also relatively new
The city suffered a year zero of sorts at the beginning of the 16th century. In 1507, it was caught up in Portugal's bid to make itself the foremost European power in the Indian Ocean - and was largely destroyed when the explorer-cum-conqueror Afonso de Albuquerque used the "burn it down first, ask questions later" method of bringing the port under colonial control. Still, he was impressed with his prize. "Muscat is a large and very populous town, flanked on both sides with high mountains and the front is close to the water's edge; behind, towards the interior, there is a plain as large as the square of Lisbon, all covered with salt pans," he wrote, lyrically, after its capture. "Here are orchards, gardens, and palm groves with wells for watering them by means of swipes and other engines. The harbour is small, shaped like a horse-shoe and sheltered from every wind." The Al Jalali Fort - which still watches hawkishly over said harbour - dates to the Portuguese period in the country (it was completed in 1586).