In the print dialog pick “Save as PDF” to keep it on your phone. A5 makes a pocket booklet; A4 suits a desk printer.
Voykit pocket guide · Oman
Thumrait
ثمريت
A 30-minute stop for fuel and a meal between Salalah and Nizwa, not a destination: skip the night unless you need a bed on the road.
Thumrait is a roadside settlement on Highway 31, 90 km north of Salalah, with a hotel, a restaurant and a supermarket. The only reason to pause is the twice-yearly camel races (November and January). Most travellers pass through in under an hour.
- Country
- Oman
- Local name
- ثمريت
- Best months
- Oct–Apr
- Avoid
- Jun–Aug (extreme heat)
- Stay
- 0 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- OMR
- Money
- OMR (rial) is pegged to the US dollar at about 2.6 dollars per rial; 1 OMR is 1,000 baisa.
- Daily spend
- Budget OMR 12–15 (only the hotel) · Mid OMR 15–20 · High OMR 20+ (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Omantel and Ooredoo sell tourist SIMs at Muscat airport arrivals; passport and biometric registration needed; Vodafone Oman is the newer third network.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance 9999
- Plugs
- Types G · 240 V · 50 Hz · UK-style three-pin sockets; many hotels also have universal sockets.
- Tipping
- Local café: Nothing; round up.; Sit-down restaurant: 5–10% if no service charge is added.; Taxi: Round up to the next rial.; Guide / driver day: OMR 5–10 for the guide, OMR 5 for the driver.; Hotel porter / housekeeping: OMR 0.5–1.
- Water
- Desalinated tap water is treated and generally safe in Muscat, but most residents and visitors drink bottled; large bottles cost OMR 0.2–0.5.
- Toilets
- Western toilets in hotels, malls, fuel stations and forts; bidet hoses standard. Fuel stations on highways are the reliable stops on long drives.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Single room at Thumrayt Hotel | OMR 12–18 |
| Meal at Thumrait Palace Restaurant | OMR 3–7 |
| Petrol (per litre) | OMR 0.25–0.30 |
| Bottled water (1.5 L) | OMR 0.30–0.50 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- SLL · Salalah Airport
- About 90 km (56 mi) south, 1 h by carAbout 56 mi (90 km) south, 1 h by car
Typical fares
- Salalah → Thumrait by car
- about 1 h, 90 km (56 mi)about 1 h, 56 mi (90 km)
- Thumrait → Nizwa by car
- about 4 h, 320 km (199 mi)about 4 h, 199 mi (320 km)
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
The town is small enough to walk across; you need your own car to reach it.
See and do
Known for
- Camel races (November and January)
- Frankincense trade route stop
- Thumrait Air Base
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Salalah | Car via Highway 31, about 1 h south | 1 h |
| Mirbat | Car via Salalah then coastal road, about 1.5 h | 1.5 h |
| Taqah | Car via Highway 31 and coastal road, about 1 h | 1 h |
| Nizwa | Car via Highway 31, about 4 h north | 4 h |
Sleep
- Near the petrol station
- Thumrayt Hotel is the only option; basic, with an onsite restaurant.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | السلام عليكمas-salamu alaykum |
| Thank you | شكراًshukran |
| How much? | كم؟kam? |
| Where is the toilet? | أين الحمام؟ayn al-hammam? |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: 'As-salaam alaykum' and a handshake between men; wait for a woman to offer her hand; avoid: Initiating handshakes or hugs across genders
- Hospitality: Accept coffee and a date; sit where you are shown; avoid: Refusing all hospitality or offering money to a host
- Dress: Long trousers or skirts and covered shoulders in towns and villages; avoid: Beachwear in souqs, villages and malls
- Right hand: Eat, give and receive with the right hand; avoid: Passing things with the left
- Photography: Ask first; photograph buildings and landscapes freely; avoid: Photographing women, military sites or palaces
- Mosques: Visit only at posted hours, covered, shoes off; avoid: Entering during prayers or outside visitor hours
- Villages and falaj: Stay on paths, keep the falaj water clean; avoid: Swimming or washing in falaj channels, walking through private gardens
- Couples: Keep affection private; avoid: Kissing or cuddling in public
Scams and watch-outs
- No ATM confirmed: bring cash from Salalah or Nizwa.
- Camel races have no fixed schedule beyond month: check locally or ask at the hotel.
- The air base is off-limits; do not photograph military areas.
Very safe; the main risk is the heat in summer and the lack of services after dark. Carry water and cash.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Thumrait yet. Suggested stay: 0 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Camel races (November and January)
- Frankincense trade route stop
- Thumrait Air Base
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Wikivoyage: Thumrait, revision 3828714 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=3828714
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Thumraitثمريت
إلى هذا العنوان، من فضلك
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire, ambulance9999
No embassy in Thumrait; the nearest consular services are in Muscat.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/thumrait). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.