Khor Fakkan is a town on the Gulf of Oman and an enclave of the emirate of Sharjah, cut off from the emirate's main territory by Fujairah and by the Hajar mountains. Its deep-water harbour faces the open Gulf of Oman rather than the Persian Gulf, which places it outside the Strait of Hormuz and gives it strategic value in regional shipping.
The port
The container terminal at Khor Fakkan is one of the busiest on the east coast and handles transhipment traffic for the wider Gulf. Because vessels calling there do not transit the Strait, the port is used by operators seeking to avoid that passage; cruise ships also call seasonally.
The town
Khor Fakkan sits in a curving bay with a corniche, a fish market and a long beach. Above the town is the Roman-style Khor Fakkan amphitheatre, a modern construction used for performances, and the road west climbs into the mountains toward Wadi Shees and the rest of Sharjah. The town has rock art and heritage sites nearby, including the Wadi Shees heritage trail.
Getting there
Khor Fakkan is reached from Fujairah by a short drive up the coast, from Sharjah and Dubai by a long mountain route through the interior, and from the enclave of Kalba along the coast. The mountain roads are spectacular and are a destination in themselves.