The 17th century Nizwa Fort is the most visited attraction in Oman. Built to guard the oasis and trade routes it is 90 minutes from Muscat. It featured cutting edge regional designs to ensure its effectiveness and is attached to the castle – the day to day administrative buildings of the Imam, acting as the last line of defence.
Visiting Nizwa Fort
We booked a private full day tour of Nizwa Fort, Jabreen Castle and Bahla Castle through Viator with Oman Golden Tours. The drive to Nizwa was about 90 minutes from Muscat. There are plenty of tours available so it depends on priorities and budget. A private tour was obviously pricier but allowed me to see what I wanted to see without being given a time frame.
Driving to Nizwa yourself is perfectly feasible, the roads are excellent, signs both extensive and in English and the driving standard seemed good.
My Experience
Our guide, Juma, picked us up on time and we set off for the 90 minute drive to Nizwa. I’d like to regale you with tales of the magnificent scenery but I fell asleep almost straight away and woke up as we were parking the car!
We started with a walk through the souk which was actually lovely, more European in that there was no haggling or pressure to by or even look, just stalls with goods for sale. Probably not an authentic experience but we actually bought a few things because there was no pressure, unlike yesterdays visit to Mutrah Souk in Muscat. We walked the short distance to the fort and Juma bought our tickets ( 5 OMR each) and then very kindly took Deb’s shopping to put in the car to save her carrying it around. The fort was built when Nizwa was the capital of Oman and is apparently the most visited attraction in the country.
The fort was constructed in the 1650’s and is over an underground stream to ensure it could survive sieges. The castle and associated administrative buildings huddle around it with the fort and its 30m high walls acting as a keep, the final line of defence. The castle was a real warren of buildings and of course we hadn’t looked at a map or plan so we wandered up and down stairs, through corridors and in and out of various rooms. Most were empty but some had carpets and cushions in to show how they’d have looked as meeting rooms or study rooms.
The exhibition on the restoration of the fort was very well done with before and after pictures of each section as well as information on how it was built. The section on the history of Oman was also very good, placing it in a world context through the ages. There were also women demonstrating traditional handicrafts which was lovely to watch.
We may well have missed something amazing but we spent well over an hour before we even got to the actual fort. The design was quite clever with the entry route being blocked by doors with murder holes above the could be used to either pour boiling date juice on the attackers or to pour water on the doors if they were set alight. The fort itself was a shell keep and firing platform with plenty of space inside for locals to shelter with their livestock and stores for food and ammunition as well as 4 wells. The views from the walls over the oasis were quite awesome, with the obligatory mountains all around.
Before leaving Nizwa we visited the small animal preserve in the castle garden. This was a bit mixed, we bought some food for Deb to feed the animals but I got the impression that a lot of them didn’t want to be there. There were plenty of rabbits and goats and they seemed to have a great time but the solitary donkey, solitary camel and two oryx seemed sad and lonely. It was nice to see them though but I’d suggest this is the next area to develop, to improve the environment and allow more social grouping for the exhibits so there’s a balance between their welfare and our education.
Nizwa Fort Photo Gallery
History
“It was built in the 1650s by the second Ya’rubi; Imam Sultan Bin Saif Al Ya’rubi, although its underlying structure goes back to the 12th century. It is Oman’s most visited national monument. The fort was the administrative seat of authority for the presiding Imams and Walis in times of peace and conflict.
The main bulk of the fort took about 12 years to complete and was built above an underground stream. The fort is a powerful reminder of the town’s significance through turbulent periods in Oman’s long history. It was a formidable stronghold against raiding forces that desired Nizwa’s abundant natural wealth and its strategic location at the crossroads of vital routes.“
References
The Wiki page for Nizwa Fort is here and the history above is taken from there.
The official Nizwa Fort page is here and it includes plans of the fort and castle.
Oman Tripper has a nice guide to the fort.
Lovely photos, and sounds a good visit. I went there about 30 years ago and bought a big rug made from rags in the market. Great idea to have a private tour too.