The Grand Hyatt Muscat is located on the shore of the Gulf of Oman in Muscat, which is the capital city of Oman; but unlike many cities, Muscat is not centralized. Rather, it is a loose conglomerate of different neighborhoods and parts sprawled along the shore of the Gulf of Oman; so while driving around Oman is fairly easy to do with its well-paved roads and streets, finding a location within Muscat can potentially be a challenge.

Fortunately, Oman has a nice system where brown directional signs with specific hotel information result in finding a hotel fairly easily — especially when it is not located directly off of Sultan Qaboos Street, which is the main highway through Muscat.

Location, Arrival and Checking In

The Grand Hyatt Muscat is quite easy to find on its own; but thanks to the brown road signs directing motorists to the hotel property on both the highway and the local streets, you really have to try hard to not find it. It is located amidst a sea of embassies and ministry buildings of other nations in a relatively quiet yet upscale area of Muscat along the Gulf of Oman.

The hotel property and grounds are surrounded by a wall of concrete blocks — reminiscent of a castle or a fortress. I personally feel that the exterior of this wall could use some “softening” with some lush landscaping.

Cars drive up to the main entrance up on a hill; and the small stained glass with the name Muscat on it at the top of the elaborate portico gives a teaser as to what awaits inside of the hotel property.

I was the only person in line while the agents at the front desk tended to other guests; and the wait lasted approximately 20 minutes. Once I approached the front desk, not much time elapsed until I received the key to my room.

The Room

The room — which was a Grand King room located in the Seeb wing of the hotel — was not a suite; but it was clean, fairly large and rather spacious. Two complimentary bottles of water awaited me — and they were indeed welcome after being out in the sultry Muscat air.

A comfortable bed in which I slept quite well was included in the room — as well as ample closet and storage space.

I did not need any more room than what I had.

Although the view was not exactly the greatest one I have ever had — it reminded me of someplace in southern California, actually — it was not the worst view either.

I have no complaints about the room itself.

The Bathroom

The bathroom was also spacious. The amenities by June Jacobs were adequate — green tea and cucumber shampoo, conditioner and soap — but not plentiful. They were certainly enough for one person, though.

While the bathroom was nice, stylish and clean, there was nothing particularly special about it. There was the standard toilet and bidet; a bathtub; a separate shower stall; a telephone; a scale to weigh yourself; and enough towels.

Other Areas of the Grand Hyatt Muscat

The hotel is actually comprised of two wings: the Fahal Wing and the Seeb Wing — both of which are anchored by the elaborately decorated central lobby area of the hotel.

One way to get from the lobby to the courtyard outside at the rear of the hotel property where the swimming pool area is located is to go down some stairs near the restaurant to the stained glass windows, where one can not only look out towards the swimming pool area; but also exit to it.

You can enter into — or exit from — either wing of the hotel to or from the courtyard area.

The extensive pool area — nestled within the courtyard of the hotel — included several quaint white bridges and a place to which you can swim and order a snack or a soft drink. There are several white wooden arched bridges which cross either the waters of the swimming pools or the decorative fountain areas; and one of them is from the rear entrance of the hotel.

North of the courtyard area is access to the beach area, which is located on the southern shore of the tranquil waters of the Gulf of Oman. Underneath the sign indicating Beach Access is a sign warning of taking photographs in the area where embassy or ministry buildings are located.

There is a garden area with lounge chairs on the green grass if you want some privacy and prefer not to go all the way to the beach.

Whether dressed fully in traditional clothing or in bathing suits, people young and old, male and female, short and tall enjoy the beach, which extends beyond the hotel property; and they involve themselves in activities such as a little soccer, jogging, walking — or simply relaxing and admiring the view of the gulf.

Service

Needing a parched thirst to be quenched after exploring parts of Oman in the dry desert all day, I could not find a store nearby where I could purchase some bottles of water for myself; so I asked an agent behind the front desk where the nearest store was located.

“What do you need?” he asked.

“Bottles of water,” I replied. “I already finished the two which were in my room.”

Looking at me like I was nuts, the agent said that he will send some water to my room and that I should not even think about finding a store.

“Thank you,” I said with genuine appreciation as I went to take photographs of the exterior of the hotel for this trip report…

…and when I returned to my room, no fewer than four refreshingly cold bottles of water awaited me — at no additional charge, by the way.

This is indicative of the service I experienced at the Grand Hyatt Muscat.

Food

I did not dine at the hotel; so I cannot give a review of the food. I also had no access to the Grand Club lounge.

Summary

The Grand Hyatt Muscat seems like a hybrid of a hotel and a resort — no worries, though, as it does not charge a mandatory resort fee — and it is a clean and beautiful hotel property inside and out.

The room rate which I paid was 70 Omani rials — roughly equivalent to $188.00 — plus a service charge of eight percent; a municipality tax of 5.4 percent; and a tourism fee of four percent. The room rate included complimentary Wi-Fi access to the Internet at reasonable speeds.

Self-parking is free of charge — although the parking lot itself can be quite crowded at times.

Grand Hyatt Muscat
Shatti Al Qurm
Post Office Box 951
Muscat, Sultanate of Oman, 133
Telephone: +968 24 64 1234

All photographs ©2015 by Brian Cohen.