Review: Atana Musandam Hotel, Oman

Review: Atana Musandam Hotel, Oman

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I touched down in Khasab on the once daily flight from Muscat. It was fascinating landing at an airport with only one daily commercial movement!

Oman Air khasab

After walking a couple of meters through the entire terminal, I found the Atana bus. There are two Atana hotels less than a kilometer apart. The Atana Musandam, which I was staying at, is newer and more central, while the Atana Khasab is by the ocean. There are a couple of things to note; Khasab is a tiny place. Both hotels are quite far from the actual center of town, but even then, there’s hardly anything there. Across a large parking lot from my hotel there was a large mall and some tourism agencies, but not much else.

Outside Atana Musandam

In any case, these two Atanas are some of your only options if visiting the peninsula, whether that’s from Dubai or somewhere else.

Atana Musandam Atana Musandam Atana Musandam Atana Musandam

The lobby of the hotel was simple, with a picture of Sultan Qaboos and colorful pillows.

Atana Musandam lobby Atana Musandam lobby Atana Musandam lobby

Check-in was done in a matter of minutes.

As I entered the hotel courtyard, I was slightly confused because there weren’t any signs for the rooms. I walked straight forward until I figured out where I was staying.

Atana Musandam courtyard Atana Musandam courtyard Atana Musandam courtyard Atana Musandam courtyard

I walked past the pool, which had a view of the harbor.

Atana Musandam pool

My Superior King Bed room was on the second floor of the most central building. These rooms start at 45 OMR per night, which isn’t bad at all in my opinion. The stairs and corridors were outside, which made for quite a cool design.

Atana Musandam stairs Atana Musandam stairs Atana Musandam stairs Atana Musandam courtyard

My room was far larger than I’d expected, and had an airy feel. I guess I’m so used to city hotels that the size of my Omani hotel rooms shocked me.

Atana Musandam Superior King Bed

Looking straight through the room out doors, light blue water from the river gave a pop of color to the otherwise earthy room.

The view from my room.
The view from my room.

There was a balcony to sit and enjoy the surrounding views, which had a unique charm.

Atana Musandam terrace

To the left upon entering the room was the bathroom. The sink and toilet were pretty standard, while the shower was spacious.

Atana Musandam bathroom Atana Musandam bathroom Atana Musandam bathroom

All the toiletries were Atana branded.

Atana Musandam toiletries

To the right at the entrance was a wardrobe and luggage rack. There was also coffee/tea.

Meanwhile, the bed was wide and comfy. The wall behind it had an interesting texture as you’ll see. It almost looked water damaged, but I assume it’s supposed to be that way.

Atana Musandam bed Atana Musandam bed

Across from the bed was the TV, which could be revealed by opening the wardrobe doors.

Atana Musandam

The desk was useful, though I moved the chair to face the other way since it’s more fun to look outside.

Atana Musandam Atana Musandam

There was also a couch facing the TV.

Atana Musandam

Breakfast and alcohol policy 

The first thing I’d like to mention is that the Atana Musandam is a dry hotel. While I personally couldn’t care less whether or not my hotel serves alcohol, I know some people like their drinks. 😉 In that case, you may want to consider the Atana Khasab (which has a liquor license) instead.

Moving on to breakfast, it was served in the main building. There was indoor and outdoor seating, and on most mornings the view was beautiful outside.

Atana Musandam breakfast

The selection contained various Middle Eastern and European options.

Atana Musandam breakfast Atana Musandam breakfast Atana Musandam breakfast Atana Musandam breakfast Atana Musandam breakfast Atana Musandam breakfast

There was also an omelette station, which I made good use of every day.

Overall, I thought the breakfast selection was solid. Since it isn’t included in all the rates, it’s good to have the mall nearby though.

Is this the best located hotel in Khasab? 

Well, as I hinted at in the beginning of this post, there aren’t many hotels in the area.

The Atana Khasab is further from town, and I only saw one other hotel between the two Atanas. Since this one was near a mall with some good restaurants, and also closest to the center of Khasab, I’d say this is a winner. Obviously if you’re renting a car the distances from either hotel to the center or Khasab will be negligible. Personally, I was fine taking the 15-20 minute walk into town and taking a taxi back for 2 OMR.

Bottom Line

The Atana Musandam lives up to its four star reputation. If you’re planning an overnight in Khasab, I’d definitely recommend checking them out. The rates are good, the room is spacious with beautiful views and it’s a short walk from restaurants and stores. Stay tuned for my post on how to get from there to Dubai without renting a car or taking a taxi the whole way.

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  1. pepe Guest

    We stayed at this hotel in December 2015. Yes Khasab is a quiet place but we loved it there. Musandam has a beautiful barren landscape. And cruising the fjords on a traditional dhow is a great day out.
    As for gay couples sharing a room. Me and my partner didn't have any problem here, nor in other parts of Oman.

  2. Monarch97 Guest

    @RF
    I am more a quiet reader of this blog, but what is your problem!?
    Everyone here is embarassed about his postings, why? I like his writings and his YT-channel is one of my most favourite ones. I`m in the same age as he is, and I would really appreciate when I had the possibility to write as guest writer on such a blog like onemileatatime.
    Maybe somebody here can tell me, why you are so upset about his postings every time!
    Thank you!

  3. RF Diamond

    @Lukas, Daniel needs to just stop posting.

  4. John New Member

    Finally someone who is okay with dry hotels and Airlines

  5. Julia Guest

    Sorry, meant to say they don't have to read his posts.

  6. Julia Guest

    "You guys and your constant hating on this kid is just ridiculous now. If you don’t like it, don’t read it. You obviously cared enough to post a comment. It says more about you than it does about him."

    Maybe these people care about the quality of this website and some feel he is bringing down the average? I agree that if they don't like it, they have to read his posts. But they are...

    "You guys and your constant hating on this kid is just ridiculous now. If you don’t like it, don’t read it. You obviously cared enough to post a comment. It says more about you than it does about him."

    Maybe these people care about the quality of this website and some feel he is bringing down the average? I agree that if they don't like it, they have to read his posts. But they are still free to express their opinions on the quality of his posts, and about any other posts as on this site as well.

    @ Marco

    Looking it up online, they offer boat cruises of the area, hikes, a fort to visit, etc. But yes, some context from the author would have helped.

  7. Marco Guest

    I had a quick look on this hotel position in Google Maps and it's really weird. It's in the middle of an under construction port between two artificial canals and a huge empty dirt parking lot.
    There are no beaches nearby, just a small swimming pool. How can they even call it a Resort?

    I think this review lacks of context. Why should somebody go to this small port town called Khasab? If i...

    I had a quick look on this hotel position in Google Maps and it's really weird. It's in the middle of an under construction port between two artificial canals and a huge empty dirt parking lot.
    There are no beaches nearby, just a small swimming pool. How can they even call it a Resort?

    I think this review lacks of context. Why should somebody go to this small port town called Khasab? If i understood correctly you didn't even have a car, so you weren't there to visit the surroundings and do a roadtrip on the Omani coasts.

  8. YHM Guest

    "The wall behind it had an interesting texture as you’ll see. It almost looked water damaged, but I assume it’s supposed to be that way."

    Anyone who has spent a nanosecond in Oman or the broader ME would surmise that is meant to evoke the traditional stone walls seen in historic homes and structures.

    Daniel is a true embodiment of the Dunning-Kruger effect.

  9. Greg Guest

    Why on earth go to Khasab? Oman is a wonderful country, I've had an awesome time there. But in this little enclave nothing really is going on except smugglers coming over from Iran on little fisher boats...

    And I really say this with all the best for you in mind: please stop writing on this Blog. Your (and Travis' ,for what its worth) posts really destroy the otherwise very high quality of this Blog.

  10. Lukas Diamond

    @Paul. Except I'm not paid to post here, he is. I wasn't sneering at all, it was constructive criticism. Apples - oranges ;)

  11. Charles Guest

    @Alvin, isn't that Daniel's boyfriend in the check-in photo? I could be wrong. Or perhaps they got separate rooms to avoid any raised eyebrows. I don't know! I suppose that's not really my business either, though as another gay guy with a thing for planes and fancy hotels, I would be interested to hear whether this is a place where I could share a room with my really, really close guy friend.

  12. RJ Member

    You guys and your constant hating on this kid is just ridiculous now. If you don't like it, don't read it. You obviously cared enough to post a comment. It says more about you than it does about him.

  13. Paul Diamond

    @Lukas: very poor writing. A sense of overbearing, self-important pomposity emerged in the first three words of your post. I stopped reading after that. You need a tutor, to help you rein in your negativity. Or possibly a psychoanalyst, to help you understand why you seem to need to sneer at people.

    This place looks intriguing. About a thousand years ago I saw a nature documentary set in Oman, and have since then day-dreamed about a trip there.

  14. Lukas Diamond

    Very poor writing. To repeat the same information (once daily) in the second sentence is a sign that an editor is needed for Daniel's articles. I stopped reading after that.

  15. Gopher Bill Guest

    What are you talking about?

  16. Charles Guest

    Did they give you any guff at check-in about two guys in a room with only one bed?

  17. Bob Guest

    When writing trip reports can you please always convert the foreign currency into USD. Would be nice to easily see how much things are in USD.

  18. Robert Hanson Diamond

    I guess I missed the previous post on why in the world someone would go here in the first place. Other than to shop in the Mall, of course. ;)

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pepe Guest

We stayed at this hotel in December 2015. Yes Khasab is a quiet place but we loved it there. Musandam has a beautiful barren landscape. And cruising the fjords on a traditional dhow is a great day out. As for gay couples sharing a room. Me and my partner didn't have any problem here, nor in other parts of Oman.

0
Monarch97 Guest

@RF I am more a quiet reader of this blog, but what is your problem!? Everyone here is embarassed about his postings, why? I like his writings and his YT-channel is one of my most favourite ones. I`m in the same age as he is, and I would really appreciate when I had the possibility to write as guest writer on such a blog like onemileatatime. Maybe somebody here can tell me, why you are so upset about his postings every time! Thank you!

0
RF Diamond

@Lukas, Daniel needs to just stop posting.

0
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