Oman contains a remarkable diversity of landscapes that range from wooded highlands to rocky slopes and from gravel plains to dunes of sand. It brings to you world of natural treasures with chain of valleys and mountains complemented by a serene Arabian Sea coastline. Dwelling by the Gulf of Oman, this Middle East country is basically covered by a vast expanse of desert land. The towering heights of Jebel Akhdar mountain ranges guard the nation to the northern side. The peninsula of Musandam by the Strait of Hormuz is an exclave of Oman within the territories of United Arab Emirates. The other exclave is Wadi-e-Madhah.
Oman has witnessed human settlement since time unknown and regarded as the one of the countries that once were host to the "Cradle of Humanity". In the 9th century, the Arabs migrated to Oman and brought along Islam. After being occupied by the Portuguese, it fell to Ottoman Turks, but in 1741 Ahmad ibn Said forced them out. The descendants of Sultan Ahmad rule Oman today. Oman became a British protectorate in 1891 and being freed from that joined the Arab League and the United Nations in 1971. Oman is the only oil-producing nation in the Middle East that is not a member of OPEC.