Khareef in Salalah

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khareef in salalah

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                               khareef in Salalah

                                                                                                         67💭                       21sep2019                            

After a long (and early) summer hibernation period where we hardly went on any trips, we ended up deciding to take advantage of the generous Eid Al Fitr holidays and head up to Salalah to experience Khareef Salalah “خريف صلالة” and check out some of the many attractions in THE tourist hotspot of Oman (at this time of the year anyway!).

Salalah (صـلالـة) is the capital city of the governorate of Dhofar in the South of Oman, and the second largest city in the country. Salalah is one of probably only two places in the Arabic peninsula (besides Yemen) that experiences a monsoon season, which is called Khareef and lasts from July to September. Khareef means “autumn” in Arabic but it refers to monsoon when describing Salalah, and by the way the word monsoon in English is derived from the Arabic word maowsim “موسم” which means season. During this time, the brown landscape of Salalah and its surroundings is completely transformed to a beautiful and lush green, and locals and tourists alike flock to Salalah.

Not surprisingly, the city and surrounding areas get really busy at this time of the year, especially considering that the Salalah Tourism Festival starts at the same time; visitors may find it difficult or extremely expensive to get a room or even hire a car unless they booked well in advance, and our top tip is to always book in advance and ensure you get your booking confirmed prior to your departure to avoid any nasty surprises!

Khareef is not the only thing Salalah is known for, Salalah is even more famous for its ancient frankincense trade, with the UNESCO including several ancient settlements (Al Balid, Sumharam, Shisr and Wadi Dawkah) in Dhofar in its World Heritage List, appropriately naming it the “Land of Frankincense”. Thousands of years later, Salalah is still well known for the quality and quantity of frankincense it produces!