Oman: Updates from Port Salalah
Cruisers Lane and Kay Finley recently spent a month in Port Salalah, Oman, having been forced to make an emergency stop there due to engine troubles en-route from Kenya to the Red Sea. They provided this update for Noonsite on the current situation there for visiting yachts.
Published 2 years ago
When we left Kenya to go direct to Djibouti, we had no plans to stop along the way. However, while under way, after about 10 days at sea, we discovered a major oil leak in the engine. We could have tried to sail on to Djibouti, 700nms away, but we knew the winds would be very light for days on end. Plus, we use our engine to run our water maker. Without an engine, we decided it would be prudent to make an emergency diversion to Port Salalah, Oman, for repairs. Salalah was about 185 miles away to the north, downwind and with a large bay to safely drop anchor, under sail, on arrival.
We had no visa arranged but when we sent an email via our satellite phone explaining our situation, the Port Captain agreed to allow us an emergency entry into their port, the busiest container port on the Arabian Coast.
We arrived on the 30th of September, 2021, and checked out for Djibouti on the 30th of October, 2021. So, here is the current situation from our experience in Port Salalah.
- SV Maitai anchored at Port Salalah, Oman.
First Yacht In:
Oman has been closed to foreign yachts for two years due to Covid. Our boat was the first foreign yacht they allowed to enter since they opened the country. Everything has changed.
- You must have received a tourist visa for Oman prior to your arrival for all persons onboard.
- You must have an official Covid vaccine certificate complete with QR code for all onboard.
- To enter the port you are still required to have an agent. However, there are no more yacht agents because there have been no yachts. Only large commercial shipping agents are available. This is a bit of a problem because the shipping agents really don’t want to deal with our problems and questions. They are not set up for it. Port Salalah is the largest shipping port on the Gulf of Aden and the agents deal with 400 meter container ships, not yachts. Their fees are ridiculously high. Like US$3,000 just for talking to you. Then they start charging for the paperwork and transporting the documents, and on and on. So be aware that stopping here is not going to be a cheap option until they sort this out.
Arrival Process:
Initially you will anchor outside the port to the north of the big port breakwater, which offers pretty good protection in 12 metres depth on sand. Your agent will need to get permission for you to enter the port, which will be given when there are no commercial ships moving in or out. After 3 days at anchor we towed ourselves in with our dinghy to an area within the port where we could wait for decisions to be made about our visa status and Covid vaccination status.
You will be assigned a spot on one of the huge concrete walls to tie up. Make sure you allow enough line to handle a 2.5 meter tidal range. There are no floating docks for yachts and yachts cannot anchor inside the port.
Clearance Process:
You will not be allowed off your boat until your agent organises a PCR test for you. The nurse will come down to the boat to administer the test. Usually it takes 24 hours for the results. The cost was $70 each.
After your test results are back, your agent will come around to collect your passports and ship’s documents and take them to the Coast Guard and Immigration. We didn’t see our agent for over a week. They just can’t be bothered with cruisers.
Once you receive your passport stamp and your boat is cleared into the country you will need to pay your port fees through your agent, which vary according to your size and the number of days you had to wait for clearance. In our case, because we were under 15 meters in length and under 20 tons the port fees were waived. That seems to be the minimum limit.
Yachting Facilities:
You will now be asked to move out of the port to Hawana Marina, which is about 12NM east of the port and a $50 taxi ride out of town. We visited this marina in our rental car just to check it out. It looks like someone had a great idea and then Covid struck. There are hundreds of condos wrapping around a man-made system of canals in the desert, but nobody is there.
There are only two marina berths with floating docks, one was occupied. They are trying to charge US$65 per night for a 14 meter berth. The only grocery shop was a small mini-market. There were a few restaurants but they were all closed up. It looks a bit sad really, out of town, with nothing to do. Might get better as the country starts opening up more, but we didn’t see any reason to move our boat there, especially at that price.
- The hospitality at Port Salalah was fantastic.
You can read more about Lane and Kay’s time in Oman on their blog: Sailing SV Mai Tai.
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About the Authors
- Kay (left) and Lane (right) with an official from Port Salalah.
Lane and Kay Finley are a couple of kiwis, in their 70s, sailing an old classic cutter around the world. They have been sailing their current boat SV Mai Tai for over 30 years. The boat is an Annapolis 44 or sometimes refered to as a Navy 44 because they were built for the Annapolis Naval Academy in 1962-3. SV Mai Tai is one of six cutters that were built for private owners.
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The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of Noonsite.com or World Cruising Club.
Related to following destinations: Djibouti, Kenya, Oman, Port Salalah (Mina Raysut)
Related to the following Cruising Resources: Circumnavigation, Cruising Information, World Regions Information
Thanks for your really informative article. We were recently on-passage to Salalah, arrived 10th December 2021, and only read it after our arrival ! I am posting this reply to assist anyone else likely to pay a visit.
We were travelling from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates to Salalah (via Muscat where we checked into the country but still required port – to – port clearance into Salalah).
In our situation, we also had engine problems – it would not start. 2 days out from Salalah I started calling our agent and asked him to get us emergency approval for a tow into Hawana Marina. I did not want to go to the port or adjacent anchorage with no engine dodging ships. After 2 days our agent had not got the approval. On 10th December, we were 1 mile from Hawana when I eventually got the Port Captain on the radio. He immediately gave emergency approval for a tow into Hawana Marina. The marina manager (who had been forewarned) immediately sent a tow boat. Within minutes we were inside the breakwater at the Marina – where we went aground because the tide was out. Anyhoo ! we waited for levels to rise and floated off then were taken to the marina wall. The boat will remain there for 1 month. The 1 month rate was significantly cheaper. We are paying approx. USD30 per day.
The marina is in a resort complex. The resort is now open. The Fanar hotel looked pretty full. The restaurants and shops all open. Alcohol is available but is expensive due to high import fees and other taxes. There is a medical center with PCR testing. There is a pharmacy. hairdressers/beauty salon. Many places are closed on Muslim weekends Friday/Saturday.
Our agent is Sharaf Shipping. They get stuff done eventually but it tends to be a bit last minute and requires chasing. The agent explained that some efforts are being made to change the clearing in process. The port is no longer used to visiting cruising boats, and consequently uses the clearing system for bigger commercial vessels, requiring entry to the port. The agent is discussing with the port having a more simple system and allowing yachts to go direct to the marina rather than the port. This may be a long-running discussion. Don’t hold your breath.
The Hawana marina manager Ahmed Hussain has really looked after us very well. We have electricity and water. Wifi is not available at the marina. Best to go to the marina office or the hotel lobby and use theirs. There is a fuel dock.
The mini mart is very limited. Best to go to the town of Salalah where there is a huge Lulu Hypermarket, and also a Carrefour in the shopping mall. Taxi’s are expensive but there are marina dockhands and the guys that operate the fishing charters will run you into town for a few Riyals.
Salalah is a nice place and is very safe. It is also a little expensive. Oman is a GCC country, so would typically be somewhat expensive. We have lived in the region for 10 years so are used to the prices. For visitors, it would appear as expensive.
In January 2022 we will be travelling up the red sea to Egypt – what could possibly go wrong !
Hope this is helpful.
Andrea & Jonathan
Yacht Legend.
I forgot to mention that the USD 30 marina fee is for a 17 meter vessel.