Popular Airport | Harakani Airport |
|---|---|
Popular Airlines | |
Approximate Flight Duration | 2 hour 50 min |
Approximate Travel Distance | 2373 Km |
Transportation to Airport from Muscat City Center
Muscat International Airport
Muscat, the capital city of Oman with a population of about 1.5 million, is a large port city in the Gulf of Oman stretching along the Arabian Sea. The road connections between Muscat International Airport, a busy airport, and the city center are quite extensive. These routes, which are linked to both the other cities of Oman and the neighboring cities outside the country, are close to Muscat Airport.
It is recommended for you to have a guide map with you at the taxis or rental cars that you can use to get to the airport from the city center of Muscat.
Because the city has many districts, you must find the roads or the means of public transport leading to Muscat Airport on the internet.
Bus
There are 60 bus stops serving permanently in Muscat. The rapidly growing population of the city and its reputation for tourism has created the need to expand public transport in the city. Sixteen of the forty new buses built under the leadership of the Oman National Transportation Company (ONTC) have replaced old buses on the route of Ruwi-Wadi Kabir.
With the new modernized buses, the new Ruwi-Wadi Adai line was opened. As a result of increasing the number of stops, there has also been an increase in urban public transport usage. New buses connecting to Ruwi and Muscat Airport started service at the end of 2015.
Busses serving between 6 am and 10 pm pass through the Sultan Qaboos motorway to reach the airport, just like any other means of transport.
Taxi
There are few taxis in some places in Muscat, while there are more in some other place. Where there are plenty of taxis, the prices are lower because of the competition.
Muscat city is both the capital and the biggest city of Oman, so you can come across taxis very often. At least if you are familiar with the following information, it will be easier for you to bargain with the taxi drivers: if the distance to your destination is below 2 kilometers the average you would pay is 0.5 riyals, and it is 2.5 riyals if the distance is about 5 kilometers. From Ruwi, one of Muscat's most important settlement centers, it costs around 8 riyals to go to the Muscat Airport by taxi.
There are two varieties of taxis in the city; one is white, and the other is orange. The vast majority of taxi drivers are Omani. Orange taxis are local, while white ones are a bit more upscale, airport taxis. You often find orange taxis in the city. If you are going to the airport from the city center, we suggest you prefer the orange car in terms of being cheaper.
Car Rental
As a foreign visitor, you can use your driver's license for 1 month within the boundaries of Oman. You can rent a car from the offices of car rental companies in the airport or at Muscat city center. Although the daily car rental fee is about 40 riyals, this price may vary depending on the characteristics of the car and whether or not you negotiate a bit.
To reach the airport from any point of the city, you have to enter the Sultan Qaboos motorway. If you are coming from the city center, you can follow the signs of the airport by entering this highway on the west side of the city and continuing from the right lane. Do not forget to rent also a navigation device while renting your car. The car rental option, which offers much cheaper opportunities than the taxi, is also the type of transportation preferred by tourists because oil is cheap in the country.
Airport Information
The name of Muscat International Airport, opened in 1973, was originally Seeb Airport until 2008because it was located in Seeb region. Located 30 kilometers west of Muscat city center, the airport's annual passenger capacity is approximately 6 million. Muscat Airport, Oman's largest airport, is also the primary airport of Oman Airlines.
The airport has airport shuttle buses with a capacity of seven people operated by the airport which are more expensive than public transport. You can visit the official website of Oman Airlines travel agency and contact the company. Oman is a country with high levels of cars in the traffic. Therefore, Muscat Airport has a parking area with a capacity of 396 vehicles.
On the first floor of the airport is the Tourist Information Office. There is a mosque in an area very close to the airport terminal. There is a free Wi-Fi service, a currency exchange office serving 24/7, ATMs, a clinic providing health services that you can find open all the time in the airport. Showering areas, smoking areas, travel agencies, car rental companies, retail stores, playground for children are other platforms can also be found in Muscat Airport.
You can shop at duty-free where the perfume, jewelry and other things are cheaper at the departure terminal of the airport. The airport is home to world famous eating and drinking areas such as Coffe & More, Costa Coffee, Subway, DQ Grill & Chill, The Irish House (Bar), Automatic Restaurant (Gulf region regional cuisine), Curry Kitchen (indian cuisine) and idli.com (South Indian food).
Transportation to Kars City Center from Airport
Harakani Airport
Kars Airport is only 7 kilometer from the city center. If you want to get to the city center from the airport, you can prefer taxi, municipal bus and rental car as well as the Sınır Tourism shuttle services that provide transportation service in agreement with airline companies. The hotels in Sarıkamış Winter Sports Center also offer airport shuttle service.
Taxi
You can take a taxi, which is always the easiest way, to go to the city center or the surrounding districts and villages from Kars Airport. You can reach the city center in 10 minutes without waiting. The taxis waiting at the airport according to plane landings are usually used as share taxi by taking more than one passenger.
This is because there is a limited number of taxis at the airport and some taxi drivers would like to earn more by asking for the same taxi fare from more than one passenger. Before taking a taxi, it would be useful to ask if the taxi fare can be shared or not.
Airport Shuttle Services (Sınır Tourism)
The airport shuttle services which provide shuttle service according to landing hours go up to Faikbey Street in Kars city center and drop the passengers off in front of Vergül Tourism agency. The same shuttle company also provides transportation service 30 minutes after landing for the passengers who would like to go Ardahan from Kars Airport. The shuttle services go up to the Sınır Tourism agency on Kongre Street in Ardahan city center.
There is only one car rental company called Öz Sema Otomotiv which serves at Kars Airport. For this reason, you are strongly recommended to book your car in advance if you want to rent a car. You can reach the authorized person by calling the office at 0-474- 212 08 18. If you are going to get to the places like Ani Ören Yeri (Ani Ruins) and Sarıkamış Winter Sports Center and if you travel more than one person, renting a car may be a more flexible and practical solution for you.
Bus
You can also prefer to go to the city center by bus from Kars Airport. There is only one municipal bus to the city center and it runs according to flight times. The municipal bus, which departs at the airport, goes up to the Lion Statues (in front of the Zafer Kuyumcusu – Jewelry Store) in the city center. If you are going to the surrounding cities or the tourist attractions like Ani Ruins, you can get to the bus station from the city center.
Since the bus station and the airport are located on different routes, you can benefit from minibuses or the shuttle services of the bus transportation companies once you arrive at the city center. The bus station is 3 kilometers away from the city center. You can take the buses provided by Sarıkamış Municipality, which depart from the city center, to reach the hotels in Sarıkamış Ski Resort. Though most of the hotels in Sarıkamış welcome their guests at the airport by offering shuttle services, you should ask your hotel if they offer shuttle transfer service considering your transportation options. The ski resort is 50 kilometers from the airport and 60 kilometers from the city center.
