Shangri-La Al Jissah: A Family Oasis In Oman

Built dramatically into the cliffs just outside Muscat, Al Waha is the family-friendly wing of Shangri-La’s vast Al Jissah resort and is the perfect destination for an easy, exotic and sun-drenched break.

Hotel Review: Shangri-La Al Jissah, Oman

Driving from Muscat airport to the Shangri La Al Jissar resort, the most prominent thing you notice among the sun-drenched cityscape of rocks and pale buildings, is a large sign for a new Trump golf course. Is there nowhere that this man’s allegedly short, stubby fingers aren’t grubbing around in? You might have expected it in other places, but Oman has a serenity and unshowiness that is at odds with a Trump real estate invasion. Not for them the glossy priapic high rises or the advertising hoarding emblazoned with red Coca Cola cans of its breakneck-speed progressing neighbours Dubai, Doha, Qatar and Abu Dhabi. Not that the Omani don’t love golf. Our driver is pleased as punch that there’s a new course coming, he loves golf – he just won’t comment on whether it bothers him that it’s Trump’s. Fair enough.

Indeed, the chaos so keenly felt in the UK feels distant in this calm, pale, rocky, dry and beautiful land where poverty and crime are low, and they have no desire to compete for global attention. There’s a sense of leaving others to do what they want to do, without passing comment, as long as they don’t encroach on Oman’s desire to contentedly move at a more dignified and sedate place.

Al Waha Lobby

That dignity, calm – and palpable kindness – is evident throughout our stay at the Shangri-La Al Waha, the most family-friendly of the three hotels that make up the 124-acre resort that sits snug between the sea and the rocky outcrops behind. Indeed, it was built from the sea in, with every nail, pipe and brick arriving by boat 20 years ago.

Al Waha, meaning ‘the oasis’ is open, airy, scented with incense and navigable with prams. In the centre, a complex of pools with slides, water volleyball nets and a splashpad with plenty of drapes and trees to find shade under form the communal hub where families settle down to gossip, read and sleep between activities, of which there are plenty. Just head to the board by the pool to find out what’s been laid on for the day; all ages are deftly catered for. From daily aqua aerobics and gym-based sessions to football, table tennis, snorkelling and even scuba-diving lessons in the pool are just some of the complimentary things you can get involved with (or not as you choose).

A highlight is the lazy river, a manmade channel that gently meanders between Al Waha and Al Bandar and between swaying palms and bougainvillea and mirrors Oman’s traditional falaj irrigation systems. As a competitive family we raced each other round trying to tip each other out of our inflatable rings to ringing laughter.

Premier Room

Beyond the pool, the sea lapping at a huge arched private beach has adventures aplenty, including sailing and jet skis. It is also shared with turtles – it is one of Oman’s top five turtle nesting beaches and rangers patrol at night during nesting season. We were lucky enough to catch the tiny hatchlings making their dash to the water one afternoon. It’s unfathomable to think they remember always to return to the beach on which they were born – but it’s true.

Scattered throughout the resort are 13 places to eat, from relaxed beach bars and pizzerias to the superb Chow Mee, where the Thai head chef can dial up the heat of your massaman curry or pad thai to face-reddening degrees or keep it mild, according to taste. There’s a lot of buffet.

We are here in May and it’s really the end of the season before the heat becomes intolerable. Already the sun is blisteringly hot – sole-burning sand needs sandals for walking on and night temperatures don’t fall beneath 30 degrees C. And the humidity is high. It’s much better to come between October and April, but we’re here for the children to get their open-water dive certificate from SSI and the Shangri-La is the perfect place to stay while doing it.

This area is one of the safest places to do it – with its superlatively calm seas. All arranged beautifully by Original Diving, my husband and the children leave me early each morning to get to grips with equalisers and gas cylinders (I never could equalise). Each day they return elated and exhausted around 2ish, with tales of sting-rays, turtles, moray eels, lion fish and octopus. They smashed their training and by the end of their third session, were fully qualified open-sea divers, aged 11 and 14.

While they’re deep underwater, I snorkel but don’t find the same coral that they’ve raved about. As with so much coral in places where it used to thrive, it’s been destroyed by intense weather systems and climate change, but there are still turtles and some colourful fish to see, but it’s a reminder that nowhere is untouched by our overheated systems.

I also head into the city – to wander the Muttrah Souk (a much more relaxed and less intense experience than you find in Marrakech, for example, but with similar wares. It’s the place to pick up spices, including frankincense – and fat dates, especially when in season). The Bait Al Zubair museum is cool, calm and inviting – and one of the finest private collections of  Omani artefacts, costumes and weapons.

On our last day, with the scuba-diving certificate achieved, we all head out on a boat to find some dolphins – it doesn’t take long before we’re surrounded by a pod. The boat drives in circles creating foamy waves over which those most beautiful of mammals arch their bodies backwards, springing completely clear of the water, more elegant than a Simone Biles Olympic-winning backflip. We all gawp, clap and cheer like an inelegant elephant seal from aboard our vessel – each of us longing to be in that water playing. That freedom. That presence. That connection.

For those with longer to spare, the desert awaits for a different kind of adventure; perhaps to the dramatic mountain landscapes of Jebel Akhdar or the golden Wahiba Sands, for example, but we were here for the sea this time. The mountains and wadis must wait – along with perhaps a glimpse of the Arabian leopard – but a return to this country, so calm, beautiful and safe – is a must.

A Superior Room in Al Waha for a family of three (two adults and child below 12) is £215 per night, per room. This is inclusive of breakfast for all and taxes. 

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For more information on Oman, visit experienceoman.com 

For more information on Original Diving, visit originaldiving.com