The project scope included refinements and changes to the master plan for a destination resort along a five-kilometer stretch of the Gulf of Oman coastline in Sifah, Oman. The resort is located on a dramatic hillside between the Hajjar Mountains and the Arabian Sea and features various hotels, villas, apartments, a marina, an 18-hole PGA golf course and club, retail venues, and restaurants. The landscape design reflected Oman’s unique sense of place and drew inspiration from its landscape, history, and culture.

The building and program elements proposed for the site were designed to leave a small footprint and contribute to the Omani theme of social and environmental sustainability. Preservation of the existing wadis and the site’s natural landscape were important parts of the landscape masterplan. This approach saved a large part of the site’s natural fauna and flora, which resulted in cost-saving for the client.

Even though recycled water was used for irrigation, the seasonal low occupancy of the resort during hot summer months required the planting of low-water-use plants for landscaping and limiting lawns to a few programmed areas. The resort was envisioned as setting a new standard for sustainable resort development in the region. Ari Daman completed the project while at EDAW.