Al Bustan Palace, a Ritz-Carlton Hotel

The coast road from Muscat climbs over a saddle of bare rock south of Muttrah, and on the far side a valley opens to the sea. In it, between a semicircle of the Hajar Mountains and a long beach, stands Al Bustan Palace, a Ritz-Carlton Hotel, its central dome rising above palm gardens. The hotel was built as a palace in function as well as name, and the approach, past a roundabout where a replica medieval dhow is mounted on a plinth, still has something of a state visit about it.

History

In 1985 Oman was to host the sixth summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council, and Sultan Qaboos bin Said ordered a hotel built to lodge the visiting rulers and their delegations. Al Bustan Palace opened that November in time for the meeting, and the delegations filled it. The upper floors were reserved for the Sultan's guests, and they have kept that role at state occasions since. For its first two decades the hotel was run by InterContinental under the name Al Bustan Palace InterContinental Muscat.

In 2008 it reopened after an 18-month refurbishment as a Ritz-Carlton, the brand's first hotel in Oman. The dhow at the roundabout outside is the Sohar, built at Sur from traditional materials for the explorer Tim Severin, who sailed her from Muscat to Canton in 1980 and 1981 to retrace the voyages of Sindbad; she was given a permanent berth here on her return.

Architecture and design

The hotel is built around an atrium that rises 38 metres to a dome, the full height of the building, with galleries on every floor looking down into it. The ceiling is decorated in the Islamic manner with geometric patterns and stalactite mouldings, and a chandelier hangs at its centre. The exterior is white, with arcades and pointed arches facing the sea, and the grounds are planted with date palms, lawns and lagoon pools fed by fountains. The 2008 refurbishment kept the atrium and the external form while reworking the rooms, the restaurants and the spa.

Rooms and suites

There are 250 rooms and suites, most with a balcony facing the sea or the mountains. The rooms are large by the standards of the period they were built in, with Omani details in the woodwork and ceilings, and the suites on the upper floors are the ones once used by heads of state. Marble bathrooms, deep balconies and sea views are the norm rather than the exception.

Dining

Al Khiran Terrace is the all-day restaurant, with an international buffet served indoors and on a terrace towards the garden. China Mood cooks Cantonese and Sichuan dishes in a dining room of dark lacquer. The Beach Pavilion serves grilled fish and seafood by the sand in the cooler months. Afternoon tea is taken in the atrium lounge, under the dome, which is the hotel's best-known room.

Wellness

The spa occupies its own wing with treatment rooms and a relaxation area, and the hotel keeps several pools: a lagoon-style pool winding through the gardens, a lap pool and a children's pool. The beach runs for about a kilometre, with sunbeds under thatched shades, and the marina next door offers boat trips along the coast and dolphin watching. There is a kids' club and a tennis court.

Weddings and events

Al Bustan Palace was built for gatherings of heads of state, so it has the rooms for large events: a ballroom and a set of meeting rooms, with the atrium and the lawns used for receptions. Omani weddings of several hundred guests are held here, as well as conferences for government and business in Muscat. The lawns by the sea are used for ceremonies and marquees.

Location

The hotel lies in Al Bustan, a village on the coast about 20 minutes by car south of the Muttrah souq and Old Muscat, and about 40 minutes from Muscat International Airport. Marina Bandar Al Rowdha is next door, and the resorts of Bandar Al Jissah are a short drive further along the coast road. A luxury hotel in Muscat with mountains on three sides and the sea on the fourth, it stands in a setting that no other hotel in the city shares.