If you have spent enough time at the Muttrah souk in Muscat, you can in fact give this a miss. But if you are visiting the Nizwa fort then do walk through this souk. Divided into several categories you have a separate area for dates, halwa and sweets. Another for fish / seafood . Another for pottery wtc and overall it’s interesting and you will definitely end up with a few spices and souvenirs

The overall rating for this souk is let down by the everyday part but the Friday souk makes up for that. It is unmissable. The Friday Souk gets underway early. Some of the traders have set up in the car park the night before. The weekly goat souk gets going around 6:00 am. As well as the crowds of tourists, great throngs of local buyers were there to participate. There are people auctioning various items from antique firearms and weapons to date flowers and other produce. Bidding was frantic. Many locals appeared to be buying their full weeks worth of produce. The meat and fish souks were busy. As to the "everyday" part of the souk, the souvenir and handcraft sections were very ho-hum. Much of the goods on sale appeared to manufactured in other parts of the world. Many of the stalls remained closed throughout the 4 days we were in Nizwa. The fruit and produce section was very clean and polished. The Date Souk appeared to be a massive tourist trap. Dates were able to be sampled here but best bought in the main fruit and produce section.

According to locals this Souq is worth visiting on the weekends and starting around 6 am to see the most action. Everything from traditional daggers to cows can be traded here but it is a great spot to walk through especially if you're in the Nizwa area. Unlike the Mutrah Souq, we felt no pressure to buy anything here and could simply browse. Lots of nice pottery and souvenirs. There are some cafes, restaurants and ice cream shops nearby and it is a short walk from Nizwa Fort. Lots of parking was available in front of the meat and vegetable section but the roads behind the Souq are tight and winding so set your navigation to "Nizwa Souq Parking" if you plan to visit. The roads between Muscat and Nizwa are in great condition if you go around the mountains.