Road Trip from Abu Dhabi, UAE to Salalah, Oman

We always wanted to take a road trip to Oman and finally got the chance to get this done. Having done all that, I felt I need to write this down for the benefit of others as I had lots of ambiguity and questions while planning this trip.

In general you need to do the following:

1. Arrange Visa
2. Arrange Vehicle Insurance for your car

We did the trip in December 2018, so if you are reading this years later - take it with a grain of salt, or better yet inform me in the comments and I can update this blog post.

Financials

Here's an approximation of different costs involved in this trip.

Expense	Amount (OMR)	Applicability
Visa Fee	5	Per Person
UAE Exit Tax	3.5	Per Person
Petrol	50	For full trip (2,500 KM approx)
Hotel	50	Per Night (Family room for 4 adults, in a 4* hotel, incl. breakfast)
Food	7	Per Person Per Day (breakfast excluded)
Vehicle Insurance Cover	25	For 7 days
Vehicle Insurance Orange Paper	?	Not sure as its price was included in the insurance cover.
Mobile SIM	3	Per SIM Card/Connection
Data / Internet Connection	1	Per Day (1 GB Data)

Visa

Lately Oman has been trying to shift from the on-arrival visa model to online visa model. Most of my friends who had been to Oman had outdated information. As per some of the links XXX I found on the internet, the on-arrival visa for Expats (on UAE Resident Visa) will not be honored. So I would recommend taking the online visa model as its fast and simple, and you get assurance about visa clearance prior to visiting.

Process:

1. Open the Royal Oman Police's E-Visa website using this link: https://evisa.rop.gov.om/home 
2. First, you need to create an account on their website. Start by clicking the "Register as User" link.
3. After you are registered, login using your credentials.
4. From the left side menu, click Apply for Visa > Apply for Unsponsored Visa.
5. After answering basic questions, the Visa Eligibility Wizard shows you the visa type that you need to apply for. For me, it was 29 A GCC Resident Visa.
6. Read the conditions and ensure your job title (or similar) appears in the list of approved professions. After that click the link that says Apply online here.
7. Fill up the details for yourself, as the main applicant.
8. Towards the end, choose the Submit and Pay option. Pay via your credit card.
9. Once the payment has been accepted, your visa status is changed to Submitted.
10. Wait for the approval email from e-VisaAlerts@rop.gov.om, ensure this email is not sent to your junk folder.
11. Once you receive the email, login to the site again. You will notice that you visa status has now been changed to Approved.
12. Repeat the process for all dependents. Start by clicking Apply for Visa > Apply for Unsponsored Visa from the left side menu. After answering basic questions, the Visa Eligibility Wizard shows you multiple visa types that you can apply for. You need to choose 29 B GCC Resident Visa. 
13. Continue filling up the application for the dependents. Note that you need to specify the Oman Visa Number in one of the screen. This is the main applicant's visa number which was emailed to you earlier. Also in the attachments screen, remember to attach the main applicant's visa file (PDF) against the field Visa Copy of the main applicant.
14. Once you are done, you get the option to either Add New Application or Submit and Pay. If you have other dependents, keep repeating this process by clicking Add New Application.
15. Once all dependents' applications have been entered (and not payed yet), click the option Find Visa Application > Draft Applications from the left side menu. All of your dependents' applications would be shown there with the status Due for Payment. Select all applications and click Proceed button. Then click Submit and Pay button on the next screen and complete the payment process. 
16. Once the whole process is completed, you can see all dependents' applications in Pending status.
17. Wait for the approval email from ROP for the dependents' visa, which will also be emailed to you as a PDF file.

You need to keep the following in mind:

1. The passports and UAE Resident Visas for you and your dependents, those must all have 6+ months of expiry time. This is a deal breaker for many families, so be sure to check it out first.
2. As the main applicant/sponsor/head of family you need to apply for your visa first (Visa Type: 29 A GCC Resident Visa) and then wait until your visa gets approved. Once approved, you can then apply for the rest of your direct family (Wife, Parents, Kids) who are residing with you in UAE and sponsored by you (Visa Type: 29 B GCC Resident Visa).
3. For your application you need the scanned files for the following:
   1. Personal Photo (White background)
   2. Passport Bio Page
   3. Passport Visa Page
   4. Emirates ID
4. For your dependents' applications you need the scanned files for the following:
   1. Dependent's Personal Photo (White background)
   2. Dependent's Passport Bio Page
   3. Dependent's Emirates ID
   4. Dependent's Proof of Relation with you. For spouse it should be the UAE MoFA attested Marriage Contract and for kids it should be the UAE issued (or UAE MoFA attested) birth certificate.
   5. Visa copy of Main Applicant (which you would've received by email upon approval of your visa)
5. Please note that the web site doesn't allows uploading attachments that are larger than 512 KB (0.5 MB) therefore its advised that before you start the visa application process, you collect all the above required files in a folder and reduce their size. I used Paint application on Windows 10, which has a quick resize option which also shows you the output file size. Once all files are converted to a smaller sized file, you should proceed with the visa application process. This is to avoid any potential session timeout (usually 20 minutes) that may occur on the ROP visa web site as otherwise, you would be resizing the images on run time.
6. If any information is missing from your application, the ROP staff will "return" your application for correction. It happened with me, as I forgot to attach my visa in the application for my kids. In this case, you would receive an email containing the reason for the return. Fix that issue and re-submit the application.
7. Its recommended to apply for these visa in "Gulf Working Time" which is 8:00 AM till 1:00 PM for the quickest response. I applied for my (main applicant) visa in the night and didn't get a response till 12 PM the next day (took approx 15 hours). Then I quickly applied the visa for my dependents and got their visa approved in 5 minutes. Probably their task list is sorted by last submission/modification date 😏

Cost:

The visa fee is 5 OMR (roughly 50 AED) per person. The fee is the same for the main applicant and for the dependents. You need to pay the fee online via a credit card for the main applicant first. For the dependents, its easier to first apply for each person and then pay for all of them together at the end.

Vehicle Insurance

You need two things to drive your UAE car in Oman.

1. Insurance Cover
2. Orange Paper

Insurance Cover

The insurance cover  (the insurance policy that helps you financially in case of an accident in Oman) can be bought from your existing vehicle insurance company. You would need to go there physically with your Driving License and Vehicle Registration card (Malkiya) and pay for this additional insurance cover. The cost depends on the number of days that you will be in Oman. You need to specify the exact date period during which you need this cover. Insurance companies have different packages, my company had a minimum of 7 days package which was enough for me so I took it.

In case you bought a shiny expensive vehicle insurance, Oman may already be covered in your existing insurance and in that case you don't need to do this (however you still need that Orange paper).

Orange Paper

This document is a proof of you having a valid insurance in Oman. This paper also lists different contact numbers in case of accident.

In total, getting the above 2 documents done cost be 250 AED. You need to carry both of these documents with you and it will be checked at the border by the ROP.

Preparations

You need to plan ahead of your trip. I have listed a few things to help you get started with your prep.

Which border to use for border crossing?

Going towards Salalah, the closest route is via the Mezyad Border Post. If you're travelling to another city in Oman, plan accordingly. 

Driving straight to Salalah or taking a stop-over in between?

This depends on your driving stamina, condition of your vehicle and other family reasons. Plan your journey and take breaks in between as per your driving stamina. We did a continuous stretch from Abu Dhabi till Haima, Oman - this showed up as a 7 hours journey on Google Maps. However due to delays at the border and mid way stops for washrooms/fuel-ups it turned out to be 8+ hours. 

If you feel sleepy during long drives, you should consider taking a break in between. You can find decent (read ok) hotels in most major cities in Oman. 

Depending on the condition of your car you may want to stop in between. 11.5 hours is doable for most maintained vehicles. Its also advisable to get your car inspected and checked for any issues before travelling such long distances. Tires also need to be checked and replaced, if old.

If you can drive 4 hours max. in a stretch, consider stopping over at Ibri.

If you can drive 7 hours max. in a stretch, consider stopping over at Haima.

If you can drive around 10 hours, consider driving to Salalah directly.

Pre-Border Crossing Checklist

1. Passports for all passengers
2. UAE Vehicle Registration Card (Malkiya)
3. UAE Driving License
4. Vehicle Insurance for Oman (if bought additionally)
5. Orange Paper from Vehicle Insurance Company
6. 35 AED per passenger as "Tax" before leaving UAE (Cash or Credit Card accepted)

Border Crossing Process

I decided to enter Oman via Mezyad Border (https://goo.gl/maps/3qR77dFVpQ82) as I read online that it is one of the border that allows expats to enter Oman. So be informed that there are some borders that only allow UAE Nationals to enter Oman - in which case it would be another drive from one border post to another.

Since I had pre-arranged the visa and the vehicle insurance, I was under the impression that it would be really fast to go through the border but I guess I wasn't lucky enough. First, not all counters were operational, only one was (it was 11 AM on a Saturday) and you had to wait in car for your turn to come and secondly I believe only Omanis and Emiratis were allowed to quickly proceed from the first check point.

For expats like me, we had to park our car on the side. I took passports for all family and walked in to a designated place nearby as instructed by the Immigration Officer. Inside I had to pay 35 AED per person as a "Tax". I didn't get a receipt and was told that receipt was only given for Credit Card payers. The staff in there took passports and stamped "UAE Exit" on them. I then left the building, back into the car and proceeded towards Oman.

Also you need to declare if you are carrying cash or valuables more than 100,000 AED from UAE to Oman. 

This UAE Customs counter hands over a document to you, which you will then need to submit to the next counter.

Although the picture below says welcome to Oman, you still are in the intermediate area between UAE and Oman.

Now you need to queue up again for the Omani authorities to check you. As per normal practice, you should lower your vehicle windows to help the custom/immigration officers to quickly do the needful. At certain check points they asked the number of passengers in the car and peeked into to have a look.

The same thing happened here as well, Omanis and Emiratis were processed on the spot, as an expat resident, I was asked to park the car and head into the Omani Immigration building.

Here the Omani immigration officers took some time to check my online visas and vehicle insurance, and then finally stamped ""Oman Entry"onto the passport. They also handed over a paper slip having passenger count, this slip was later collected by another Omani officer who again peeked into the car to confirm the number of passengers and smiled us into Oman, finally!

Overall on a Saturday morning, with approx 10 cars ahead of me in the queue it took in total 30-45 minutes to completely cross the border.

Roads

Entering Oman immediately triggers a different driving experience. You notice that the curbstones, road markings, road lights all are either gone or have been degraded. UAE is definitely way ahead in terms of providing and maintaining road infrastructure, that's the first thing you will notice. Most of the roads I took in this trip were 2-way roads, which means there are 2 lanes on the road one for coming and one for going, with no separation in between. This can be a real driving challenge and hassle, specially while driving in the night time (more on this in later parts).

Toilets

After doing the distance, I have learned that for such road trips in Oman you need to plan your breaks and stops. Public washrooms are available at many places (not all places, you could be far from the toilet for an approx. maximum of 2 hours). These washrooms are either available on a gas station or near a masjid. In both cases I found all of these toilet facilities to be hardly maintained and in a deplorable shape. Its advised to carry lots of tissue paper supplies to sanitize/clean the washroom before you use it. Also you need to take your own soap in there, didn't found it in a single washroom. Its also recommended to carry your own gallon water bottle for such purposes, in case.

Not that I am obsessed with this issue, I felt this needed to be highlighted for anyone planning to go there. See below one sample picture. To be honest this is not the worst one!

Mobile SIM & Data

Once in Oman, you can find the mobile SIMs from most grocery stores (called a "Commercial XXX" as opposed to a "Baqala"in the UAE). I got the "Hayyak" Pre-paid mobile plan from the Telco OmanTel. The SIM cost 3 OMR, and it came with 2 OMR worth of credit. There are various data packages and options available on that SIM (https://www.omantel.om/Personal/mobile/Prepaid), however my aim was to just get the data started so that I could navigate using Google Maps. The below picture shows various options available, I liked the 1 GB data package which cost 1 OMR (approx. 10 AED) and it had to be used within 24 hours (2nd row in the picture). To get that package you needed to dial *141*24#.

That took care of the data, the SIM and the package was immediately activated and I was online in no time. A word of caution here, not all Oman has data coverage so you will find yourself at certain points in your journey without an internet connection and sometimes even without mobile signals. Anyway the Google Maps app is the best, once you set a destination and start the navigation, you don't need internet anymore.

You do need your original passport to buy that SIM, the shop keepers would take a copy of your passport using their smart phone and open the OmanTel app and type in your details from the passport.

Driving & Speed Cameras

You need to watch out for the change in road speed and the presence of speed cameras. In general the speed cameras are not there on the two-way roads. There is a speed buffer as I could estimate from the speed of other local vehicles. To be safe I did +10 kmph and didn't get snapped alhamdulillah!

Since the total journey from Abu Dhabi to Salalah is 11.5 hours, I decided to take a break, sleep in and then continue driving the next morning. This was done so that I get time to rest, and also because the night driving on such long routes in Oman should be avoided as most roads don't have any light poles and these roads are two-way which means that you will have difficulty estimating the road corners while the opposite traffic is throwing their beams in your face. Its not impossible, its just not easy and its definitely not worth taking the risk. Also as expected in any two-way road situation, you will find that vehicles are overtaking from both directions and you need to be careful and patient in such situations.

The road trip from the Mezyad border post to the mini town of Haima is approx 5.5 hours. However with 2 bathroom breaks and refueling, it took around 6 hours.

Overnight stay at Haima

We should have actually left early so that the 5.5 hours journey would take place in the day light. But that didn't happen and we found ourselves driving on pitch black roads again, only lighted up with the annoying light beam emitted by the vehicles from the other direction. Every beam appeared to be a high beam, which it wasn't. Most of the drivers on the road were considerate and tried to kept their beams low. Finally we reached Haima and saw some life taking place in this small town.

There are couple of night stay options available in the mini town of Haima. Since these hotels were not available on Booking.com, I didn't knew about them but I saw them on Google Maps and rightly so assumed that due to the remote location their would be availability. You can find family rooms here between the price of 15-30 OMR per night. Don't expect anything fancy, these are mere motels with sleeping beds and AC. However after the 7+ hours journey from home, it felt good to relax in that hotel. We stayed at the Al Masa Furnished Apartments, we took a 3 bed family room without kitchen and it cost us 20 OMR (approx. 200 AED). The hotel was in a good location. A relatively large super market, an Indian restaurant, a Pakistani restaurant, coffee shops, gift shops, tyres shop, vehicle workshops, UAE Exchange, Mobile shops, etc. were all at walking distance. Washroom had leakage issues and we didn't use it much. Cant expect too much at this price but such basic facilities should be kept maintained.

This Pakistani restaurant had amazing tasting daal roti which we enjoyed a lot. We ordered different types of daal and karhi with rotis, and all that cost us 3 OMR (30 AED) which was quite surprising.