Begin the experience by following scent before sight. Let frankincense guide the way through narrow lanes where resin sits in open sacks and incense burners glow softly at shop entrances. Present vendors different grades of resin and explain how to burn, blend, or use each variety at home, turning a simple purchase into a lesson in heritage.

Offer more than fragrance. Display silver jewellery, prayer beads, clay and metal burners, colourful scarves, and lightweight cotton thobes suited to the Gulf climate. Encourage bargaining as part of the ritual, allowing conversations to unfold slowly rather than rushing transactions. Deliver goods meant for daily life, not just souvenirs. Close the souk on Friday mornings but keep it open late into the evening, reinforcing its role as a social hub rather than a tourist stop.

Drive inland and enter a quiet valley where Boswellia sacra trees stand spaced across pale earth. Recognise the setting as one of the rare natural habitats of frankincense trees and as part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Reveal a landscape that appears simple at first glance, yet carries centuries of economic and cultural weight.

Observe harvesters cut bark carefully to release milky resin that hardens into frankincense. Preserve a method that has changed little over generations, linking Dhofar to ancient Egypt, Greece and Mesopotamia. Avoid grand monuments and instead offer open land and stillness. Allow visitors to walk slowly, reflect, and understand how a single tree once anchored trade routes that stretched across continents.

Travel east of Salalah and uncover Samharam, an ancient port city that thrived for centuries on the frankincense trade. Walk through the remains of storehouses, multi-storey homes and a temple dedicated to the moon god Sin. Visit the small museum beside the ruins and look across the lagoon at Khor Rori, where camels move calmly against a dusky horizon. Experience history not behind glass, but under open sky.

Continue toward Wadi Darbat, where waterfalls and green valleys create a dramatic contrast to the surrounding dry terrain. Offer scenic drives, quiet picnic spots and wide views even outside monsoon months. Provide a setting that blends adventure with reflection, appealing to travellers who value space, heritage and understated beauty.