Hotel review: Al Bustan Palace Muscat undergoing a Ritz-Carlton transformation

Go back 15 years and the winner of the awards for the Best Hotel in the Middle East was always the Al Bustan Palace in Muscat, a luxury resort in an idyllic setting actually built for a GCC summit meeting a decade earlier. This year the management of the hotel passed to the famous Ritz-Carlton chain.

It is early days for the new management as the hotel already has quite a history of success. Nonetheless the need for modernization is there and the new managers have started their necessary work.

Distinguished history

Not that the Al Bustan Palace is a disappointment. From its huge central atrium lobby to private one kilometre beach front, splendid gardens and beautiful views over the Indian Ocean this is a special place. The architecture may look a little dated but it is growing old graciously. This in not a hotel that should be demolished as Dubai has just done with its much-loved Hilton Beach Club.

The rooms are in a traditional style rather than the ubiquitous minimalism of most modern hotels these days. That has its charm. ArabianMoney also liked the private terrace off the room and individual pool access for a morning dip.

But it would have been nice to have a Nespresso machine and not sachets of Nescafe. The beds are also not quite up to the normal Ritz-Carlton standard and presumably scheduled for an upgrade to this global best-in-class. Then again the gym is first-class and the pavilion on the beach straight out of a top South African resort.

Service standards are also somewhat mixed with an excellent front-of-house manned by some highly experienced Omanis, and rather more muddled table-standards in the restaurants, particularly at breakfast where the only requirement is to serve tea and coffee.

A new executive chef has just joined the hotel from the Ritz-Carlton and that is no doubt also going to raise the already good quality of the food in the Al Bustan Palace which lacks a certain sophistication and finesse. It seems Muscat has lagged behind the amazing improvements in not so far away Dubai hospitality and calling in the Ritz to help is probably the best solution.

Moving forward

You feel the same sense of time standing still if you visit the Muttrah Souq next to where the global cruise ships dock on their frequent visits. But has it really? The shops all sell cheap Pakistani and Chinese souvenirs that seem of little interest to the upmarket tourists who come to Oman for its genuinely Arabic culture.

Perhaps belatedly Oman is realising that it has to move with the times to keep these valuable guests coming. The Ritz-Carlton is the right choice for the majestic Al Bustan Palace which should be back up among the leading hotels of the region before very long.