Barka Fort

"Barka Castle dates back to the late 17th century. as a defence against Persian and Portuguese invaders .it is surrounded by the the fish market and the vegetable market.

It was built nearly three hundred and fifty years ago, in two phases, the first phase during the Imam Saif bin Sultan al-Yarubi, and the second stage by Imam Hamad bin Saeed Al Busaidi.

i will recommend it ,but don't take the tour guide he is a fraudster."

Amazing Arafat

"I give this low rating for the following: there is nothing wrong with the fort, it is nicely restored, although maybe a bit too much. Now where the problem starts is with the state personnel taking care of these treasures. We arrived in the early afternoon (2:30pm), and were approaches by what we guess is the caretaker who says that it is closed due to renovation. There was no single sign suggesting that this is/was the case, and also no indication of opening hours nor entry fees.
Now, a bit later the guy says "I can help you", and he opens the door to us, and shows us around in a way he clearly has done already before. He was however camera shy (but I got him on the photo in the bottom right corner - tall, fat guy with Ray-Ban glasses). When his mini tour was finished the rabbit came out of the hat: he wanted money, 10 OMR for 2.. Money that he puts in his pocket of course (theft?), and he couldn't let it boasting around how many times he has done this before... In the end we paid 5 OMR (to put in perspective, he can buy 40kg of tomatoes with that), and left with a bad feeling.(and this on our first day in Oman)
Take care in Oman, as many "I can help you" are not real, it's just for the money 👎"

Koen Vanhollebeke

"The fort consists of several towers distributed on all its corners. Inside the fort a mosque was built for prayer and on the southwestern side a watchtower, then the tower extends with a wall to the southeastern side, and another tower was built to protect that area, as there was in the fortress in the past another tower overlooking the northeastern side, and another overlooking the western side.

With this expansion, the fort has been completed in terms of military and defense, and is considered a valid seat of the government[8], as the fort was a residence for the governor and a seat of government at the same time.

The path of the gate through which citizens enter the justice room or court room differs from the gate through which the judge or imam enters. This is the first reference room in the fort, where all cases and matters related to state affairs are discussed, legal and legal issues are discussed, as well as judgments are issued. Next to the courtroom is the imam’s family suite, which consists of three rooms, a reception room, and a water well serving family members and those who serve them. higher.

On the western side, there is the oldest part of the fortress, which is called the Defense Castle, because there are stores of weapons and ammunition, secret stores, detention rooms, etc. There is a water well in the tower that serves those in it."

Mohammed Al-zadjali.