Barka is compact and its sights are few but genuinely worth seeing. The fort is the centrepiece — well-preserved, photogenically positioned near the water, and less crowded than the more famous forts closer to Muscat. The bullfighting arena draws a local crowd on Friday mornings in season, and the Barka souq is a working market rather than a tourist production.
The coast near Barka has some decent beaches and good snorkelling. The Batinah plain stretching west is flat and agricultural, punctuated by palm groves and date farms — pleasant cycling country if you have a bike.