Capital: Muscat Religion: Islam, predominantly Ibadhi sect.
Government: Monarchy with a provisional legislature (the Majlis Ash Shura.)Head of State is His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said Area: The Sultanate encompasses an area of 300,000 sq kms.
Major industries: Oil, natural gas, agriculture, and fishing
Population: Approximately 2 million. Around 1.5 million are Omani nationals. The remaining are expatriates from India, Asia, other Arab countries, Europe and USA.
Climate: The country's climate is predominantly arid and varies slightly from one region to another. In the coastal areas, the weather is hot and humid during the summer months, while it is dry elsewhere in the interior. Milder weather dominates the mountains and Dhofar region all the year round. Winter temperatures can be as low as 15°Celsius and summer temperatures can be as high as 48° Celsius in Muscat and as high as 54° in the desert. Dhofar, located in the southernv region of the country however, enjoys a regular monsoon between June and October, every year.
Best Time to visit : Between October and April, when the weather is pleasantly warm in the day and cool in the evening. Temperature averages at 25-35 degrees centigrade during the day and dips to 17-19 degrees centigrade at night.
Culture: Like all the Arab countries, Arab Islamic Culture dominates the life style in the Sultanate.
National Dress: Men - dishdasha (robe),Kimah (cap),mussar (turban)Women - jallabia (dress), sirwall (trousers), thobe (overdress cloak, lahaf (head shawl), abaya (black cloak). Women generally leave their face and hands exposed, while in the desert, women of the Bedouin tribes wear a mask, called a "birqa."