Much undeveloped with a simple infrastructure, Masirah Island offers opportunities to surf, bird watch (with over 328 species recorded) and see four species of sea turtle come ashore to lay their eggs, including the largest number of Loggerheads anywhere in the world.
Very few visitors to Oman have so far made it to Masirah. It is the latest area of the country to open up to tourism. There is still more turtles than tourists, offering plenty of unspoiled coastlines.
Found off the south-east coast of Oman, Masirah Island is reached by a one and a half-hour ferry journey from Shannah Port on the coast, south of Wahiba Sands. With the Omani Government considering flights from Muscat and developing the infrastructure on the island, Masirah Island is worth visiting now before everyone catches on!
Masirah feels like a true ‘desert island’. Empty, golden beaches with turquoise water meet barren hills and eerie landscapes. Goats and camels forage in parched scrub and low acacia bushes. The island’s tiny town, Hilf, has a few shops and a handful of cafes and restaurants. There are some reasonable hotels and guest houses and camping on the beach is possible.
Watersports are a key attraction, particularly kite surfing as there is always wind here, the lagoon is very shallow and the water is warm. Stand on the headland at Ras Abu Ar Rasas and the ocean pounds the shore. Wildlife is the other draw with four species of turtle nesting and the island is number one in the world for loggerheads. Uniquely, there’s a school of non-migrating humpback whales. The island is also frequented by 300 species of bird, many of them rare.
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