Musandam Peninsula Road
🌍 Oman
The Musandam Peninsula Road is a dramatic coastal and mountain highway in Oman's Musandam Governorate, an exclave separated from the rest of Oman by the United Arab Emirates. The road system connects the town of Khasab to the rugged interior and along cliff edges overlooking the Strait of Hormuz and the fjord-like khors (inlets) that earn the area its nickname, the 'Norway of Arabia.'
The main route climbs through the Hajar Mountains on a series of switchbacks to the Jebel Harim plateau at around 2,087 meters, passing through fossil-rich limestone terrain that was once an ancient seabed. The roads are modern and well-paved, a remarkable feat of engineering through extremely rugged terrain. The landscape is stark and otherworldly, with deep wadis, sheer cliffs, and isolated mountain villages accessible only by 4WD tracks branching off the main highway.