Tips for Renting a Car in Oman?

Most travellers arrive in Oman through Muscat airport which is a common place to pick up a rental car. You also have the option to choose a different pick-up location in Muscat town in case you decide to spend a few days in the capital without a car.

Another popular place to hire a car in Oman in summer is Salalah, Dhofar region, in the South of the Sultanate. Salalah is a small town and also has options to pick up the vehicle at the airport or other locations (often at some city hotel).

You can pick up and drop off the rental car in a different location in Oman at an extra fee. The additional cost depends on how far away the two locations are.

For example, picking up and dropping off the rental car in different places in Muscat might be even free of charge. As I checked on Discovercars, some companies offered exact same rate for different pickup and drop-off locations within the city of Muscat. 

However, a one-way fee may result in quadrupling the regular rental rate if you want to pick up the car in Muscat and drop it off in Salalah, which is 1000 km away from the capital of Oman.

Most of the car hire companies permit taking a rental car from Oman to UAE and back.  Prior to making a reservation, double-check if the option of driving to Dubai from Oman is allowed. You must also inform your rental company about your plan to cross the UAE border.  Necessary documentation permitting crossing the border will be issued by the rental company.  

Driving a rental car from Oman to other countries rather than UAE is not permitted.  You cannot go to Yemen, for example. I have not seen Saudi Arabia either in any of the rental companies’ allowed countries lists. 

Age requirements for car hire in Oman

Although you can legally drive in Oman from the age of 18, car hire companies require the driver to be at least 21 years old or no older than 75 and have at least 1 year of driving experience (“on paper”). 

For example, before starting your search on Discovercars, you have to tick the box confirming your age group and country of residence. The whitelist is 30-65 years old. 

If you are below or above this age group rental companies will most likely charge extra fees.

Is International Driving Permit required to hire a car in Oman?

An international driving permit (IDP) is required if your license is not in the Latin or Arabic alphabet. You must carry a valid original license to support IDP. 

UK, US, and Canadian licenses are accepted for car hire in Oman. Also, UAE issued licenses are accepted when renting a car in Oman.