In March 2015, the grandparents took the kids for a few days, so we used this opportunity to visit Muscat, Oman. As we couldn’t decide between the Al Bustan Palace and The Chedi, we decided to stay at both. Al Bustan Palace is 40 minutes away by taxi from Muscat International Airport and you can expect to pay 12 OR for the ride.
Al Bustan Palace – The Arrival
The hotel lobby is very impressive, the ceiling is high and reminds entering a mosque. During the checkin, we were offered omani coffee and stuffed dates. Then Farad took us to the room.
We booked a room with Al Hajar mountain views as we heard that that the sunsets on the mountains were stunning. Unfortunately just after our arrival, the wind started to blow dust all around, reducing the visibility to less than 1km! The sky was really looking like a foggy day at home… That explains by the way the greyness of the pictures.
Al Bustan Palace – The room
The room is nice, yet old- fashioned, and has a small balcony. The bed is large and comfortable! There is a desk and a small lounge area. The lightning in the room is cozy with an oriental touch.
We were offered a box of delicious handmade omani chocolates as welcome gift. A nice touch is that the box was replaced by a new one once it was empty.
There’s a Nespresso machine and a minibar, all complimentary. Nevertheless the choice of beverages is reduced and there are no alcoholic drinks.
The main entrance is at level four, the pool and the sea are at level 1. You basically have two pools, one adjacent to the hotel and the other one facing the sea. Plus a shadowed childrens pool.
The resort has also a huge garden with plenty of palm trees and sun loungers. The bar offers all-day drinks and snacks and there’s a happy hour from 6-7 daily. We had arabic chicken skewers with basil sauce, delicious!
Al Bustan Palace- The Restaurants
The resort has several restaurants, and for our unique night, we choose the Beach Pavilion. Reservation was made from the room by phone and was handled very professionally.
Food was tasty and service was good. We had a grilled fish and the mixed grill seafood platter. Our plan was to pair it with a Chardonnay but the waiter told us that all their white wine was sold out. The only available suitable drink was Champagne, so we went for it.…Having to order expensive Champagne because your 5 stars hotel runs out of white wine is simply unacceptable. Nevertheless, the dinner on the beach was really romantic.
Breakfast was served in the main restaurant, Al Khiran Terrace. It was a huge buffet with all the food and juices you can wish for. In this season the temperature was perfect and we could enjoy the breakfast outside with the view on the pool. Breakfast is followed by an international lunch buffet with live cooking stations. Special themed buffet nights or an à la carte menu are available for dinner. A small play area inside the restaurant will keep your kids busy while you can enjoy the food.
In the garden, there’s also a nice playground for kids. The Ritz Kids program offers regularly scheduled activities.
The Beach House offers complimentary snorkel equipement, and other activities like kayak or catamaran…
What we enjoyed the most:
• Location
• Food
• Beautiful pool, garden and beach
What we liked less:
• cleanliness of the room
• no flexibility in extending the checkout time
• running out of wine
Where to find Al Bustan Palace:
PO Box 1998
Muscat, 114 Oman
Phone: +968 24 799666
