Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque

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"Listed as a featured stop on the Oman portion of the itinerary, offering travelers the chance to visit and experience the landmark mosque." - Rachel Chang Rachel Chang Rachel Chang is a travel and pop culture journalist who contributes to Travel + Leisure, Condé Nast Traveler, Lonely Planet, and more. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines

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"The country's largest mosque; it can accommodate 20,000 worshippers." - Mo Noubani

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"The largest house of worship in Oman, known for its beautiful marble and stone promenades."

"The Grandest Mosque in Muscat Proportions can be deceiving in a mosque that is littered with superlatives – largest, biggest, most, prettiest are common words you hear when researching the mosque that was completed in 2001. The mosque’s total capacity is 20,000 visitors/worshipers – larger in size than many of the cities in Oman. The dome rises 164 feet above the floor, and the chandelier illuminates a space of 46,000 square feet below. Walking into the main prayer hall is breathtaking, thanks to the chandelier made of Swarovski crystals with a diameter of 26 feet. But the hall is also graced by the world's second-largest handmade Persian rug. The delicate rug took four years to produce and weighs in at 21 tons. 600 dedicated women tied 1,700 million knots to create this masterpiece. One of my favorite parts about the rug was the graduated color used to mimic the light reflection outward. More Info: http://www.ottsworld.com/blogs/sultan-qaboos-grand-mosque-oman/ Non-Muslims are allowed to visit the mosque every day, except Friday, from 8:30 until 11:00 am. Visitors are asked to dress modestly and in a way befitting places of worship. Women are also required to cover their hair."

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"Passing through the gate into the mosque's bright, soaring complex, I was struck by the bone-white minaret and golden dome reflected in a polished courtyard; inside the vast main prayer hall (we removed our shoes) the scale is overwhelming—worshipper capacity is 20,000—and the carpet, which took four years to weave, contains some 1.7 billion knots; staff in the public information office fed us halwa and locals I met there emphasized religious tolerance and Oman’s peacefulness." - Saki Knafo Saki Knafo Saki Knafo is a writer based in New York City. His work has appeared in GQ, The New York Times Magazine, New York Magazine, Details, The Atlantic, Men’s Journal, and many other publications. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines