A tourist wanting to find out more about Islam could not do better than to visit this impressive mosque, with its unpatronizing, educational guides. Constructed on reclaimed land in 1984, Al-Fatih Mosque is the biggest structure in the country and is capable of holding up to 7,000 worshippers. The mosque was constructed with marble from Italy, glass from Austria and teak wood from India, carved by local Bahraini craftsmen, and has some great examples of interior design.

The dedicated guides lead guests through the mosque, explaining features of religious etiquette while pointing out particular features of mosque architecture. Guests start their guided tour at the small library directly to the right, inside the central entrance, where women will be given a black cloak and headscarf to be dressed in while visiting the prayer chamber. Wearing shorts is forbidden.

After the tour, guests are welcome to free pamphlets in the Discover Islam series -published by the Muslim Educational Society of Bahrain - which help to dispel some of the generally held mistaken beliefs about Islam.