The Chedi Muscat

At dusk the gardens of The Chedi Muscat fill with the sound of water. Channels run between the buildings, lanterns are lit along the paths, and fires burn in iron bowls beside the pools. The hotel stands on the shore of the Gulf of Oman in Al Ghubra, a residential district on the long coastal strip between Muscat International Airport and the old harbour of Muttrah, and from the beach the Hajar Mountains show as a dark line behind the city.

History

The Chedi Muscat opened in January 2003, when Oman had few hotels that a traveller would cross the world for. It was developed for GHM, General Hotel Management of Singapore, the company founded by Adrian Zecha and Hans Jenni whose Chedi brand had begun in Phuket and Ubud. It was the group's first hotel in the Middle East. An extension in 2008 added the Chedi Club suites and the Long Pool, and the hotel's room count rose to 158. In the years since, Muscat has gained several large resorts, but the Chedi kept its scale and its reputation as the city's quietest address.

Architecture and design

Jean-Michel Gathy of Denniston in Kuala Lumpur designed the hotel, as he had The Chedi in Bali and would the Chedi Andermatt. He took the forms of Omani fort architecture, the pointed arch, the crenellated parapet, the shaded colonnade, and stripped them to a black-and-white scheme set against white render and dark timber. The buildings are low and arranged around water: reflecting pools in the courtyards, a water garden before the lobby, the three swimming pools stepping down towards the sea. The interiors follow the same discipline, with black frames, pale stone floors and almost no pattern, so that the light and the sea do the decorating. The gardens cover 21 acres and the beach runs for several hundred metres.

Rooms and suites

The 158 rooms divide between the original two-storey wings, where the Serai rooms are, and the later Chedi Club wing nearer the Long Pool. Rooms have teak floors, oversized beds set low and bathrooms with freestanding tubs behind black-framed glass. The Chedi Club suites add terraces, dedicated check-in and a lounge of their own.

Dining

The Restaurant, so called, is the main dining room, built around four open kitchens that cook Arabic, Asian, Indian and Mediterranean food in view of the guests, under a high ceiling hung with Omani lanterns. The Beach Restaurant serves fish and seafood on a deck above the sand in the cooler months. The Lobby Lounge does afternoon tea, and the pool cabanas serve lunch. Wine is served, which in Muscat is not to be assumed.

Wellness

The Spa has treatment rooms arranged around a courtyard and a menu that draws on Asian traditions, in keeping with the brand's origins. The three pools are the heart of the place: the Serai Pool among the original wings, the Chedi Pool near the beach, and the Long Pool, 103 metres from end to end, laid out for swimmers rather than sunbathers. The Long Pool and the Serai Pool are reserved for adults; families use the Chedi Pool. A gym and a tennis court complete the set.

Weddings and events

The Chedi Muscat hosts weddings on its lawns and beach, with dinner served in the gardens or under the arches of the colonnades, and it takes meetings and private dinners in its function rooms. The scale suits a wedding of family and close friends rather than a convention, and the gardens are the usual setting for the ceremony.

Location

Al Ghubra North lies on the seaward side of the Sultan Qaboos Highway, about 15 minutes by car from Muscat International Airport and 20 to 25 minutes from the Muttrah souq, the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque and the Royal Opera House. For a luxury hotel in Muscat it is an unusually private spot: a walled compound that opens only to the beach.