Wadi Tiwi

Wadi Tiwi opens on the coast road between Muscat and Sur, and a narrow tarmac lane runs inland along it through a string of villages, Hayl, Mibam and others, with banana, date and lime plantations terraced along the wadi floor and the rock walls closing in above. Pools of clear green water lie along the stream and are used for swimming. The road narrows to the width of a car between garden walls and eventually stops, and beyond that the wadi continues on foot or by four-wheel drive toward the upper villages and a route that climbs to the plateau. Wadi Shab is a few kilometres north on the same coast and is the better-known of the pair.

What you actually see

• The green pools - the swimming basins along the wadi stream.
• Plantation villages - the settlements and terraces up the valley.
• The narrow lane - the road squeezed between garden walls.
• The gorge walls - the rock closing in above the plantations.

When to go

October to April; summer on the coast is hot and humid. Avoid the wadi in and after rain, when flash floods run through it. Weekdays are far quieter than weekends.

Honest expectations

The lane is extremely narrow with nowhere to pass or turn, and driving it in a large vehicle is a mistake. Flash flooding is a genuine danger. The villages are inhabited and the plantations private; modest dress is expected when swimming. Litter around the accessible pools is a problem.

Nearby

Wadi Shab lies north; Sur is south along the coast.