Saudi Arabia feels like a final frontier. Apart from the two million Muslim pilgrims who go to Mecca every year, very few foreigners have been able to enter the country for decades. Yet, suddenly, we are not only allowed, we are being actively encouraged, and I can testify that we get the warmest of welcomes.
Just because we can now go, why should we? After all, many travellers are wary of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, KSA as it is widely known. In any case, what would we see when we get there? There are of course no useful guidebooks. For instance, there are just a few pages about Saudi Arabia at the back of the current Lonely Planet, from 2019, which lumps together Oman, the UAE and the Rest of the Arabian Peninsula, and those words read like they were written by someone who has never actually been here.
I hope this article answers these and other questions for curious explorers, and I believe this to be the most comprehensive guide for tourists to the country so far available. Please note it is a travelogue, not a political commentary. I need to declare an interest from the start. I have worked as a consultant in Riyadh for the past three years, commuting most weeks from home in Dubai. Nobody has paid me to write this piece, or influenced what I think, though I have obviously been in a position to get around the country more than most.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is of course not completely what the authorities here would want you to believe it is (where is?). But nor is it what you might currently think it is either. The reality lies somewhere between and seeking it out with an open mind is what makes a visit here so fascinating.
The first shock is that Saudi Arabia is open to tourists at all. The iqama system that previously controlled the very few foreigners invited in, mostly for work, was swept away in 2019 and replaced by a simple tourist visa that takes only a few minutes to sort through Visit Saudi.
You are going to be more shocked still at what you find when you get here. For starters, women no longer have to cover up, though many still do, or need a male escort to go out in public, so you can now behave almost like back home. There are signs everywhere of preparation for the legalisation of alcohol, which is in any case rife in private. In fact, what you will discover is a traditional country going through the upheavals of rapid social and economic modernisation. There is still a way to go but the distance travelled already surprises most visitors and, in my view, there are few such exciting and complex places in the world today.
The Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) was born in Mecca in 570, and died in Medina in 632, since when this land of almost 100,000 mosques has had unique status as the pilgrimage destination for Muslims everywhere. Once the Al Saud dynasty started seizing control in 1727 it became deeply conservative, and after oil was struck in 1938 it has also been immensely rich.
Today, 35m people live here. Approximately 7m are immigrant labourers from South Asia. About 70% of Saudis are under 30 years of age, are actively engaged with the world on the internet, which is completely uncensored, and are likely to dress like you and me. Around two-thirds are crammed into the three major urban areas of Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, while many of the rest live a rural life hardly changed in centuries.
It is this G20 country, which will host the FIFA World Cup in 2034, that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has started to reform. MBS, as he is universally known, one of the most controversial world leaders of our time, whose official portrait is everywhere, provides the context of a visit to Saudi Arabia today. Born in 1985, anointed Crown Prince in 2017 and Prime Minister in 2022, he already effectively rules in the name of his ailing father, King Salman.
On the one hand, as you know, he has been accused of violating human rights to consolidate power. On the other hand, which you may not know, he has proved a social reformer who appears to be dragging his country through an Islamic reformation. The religious police, the Hai’a or Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, has been swept away. He also claims to be an economic reformer wanting to diversify away from oil, though he is definitely a political conservative who has no intention of dismantling his royal court.
His dream is set out in his 2016 manifesto, Vision 2030, a key plank of which is opening the country to tourism. As part of that process, six giga-projects are currently receiving vast sums to develop facilities and infrastructure, and eight locations have recently been declared UNESCO World Heritage Sites (there are fourteen more on the tentative list awaiting final confirmation).
English is increasingly spoken in tourist areas, ATMs are plentiful in big cities, and travel between regions is easy by plane, train, taxi or hire car (petrol is cheaper than drinking water at 60 US cents a litre, about a third the price in Europe). It is of course boiling hot in the summer – when Saudis are famed for their late waking, late working, and late partying – but it can be surprisingly cold in the winter.
For this article, I have divided the country of thirteen provinces simply into the centre, west, north, east and south. In addition to working in the big cities, I have spent dozens of weekends and a lot of leave touring around to beat a track that other independent travellers might follow. Inshallah. If you are willing to leave your preconceptions at the airport, to try to see the world through others’ eyes for the sake of learning about a country, a people and a religion, that is so important to the welfare of us all, what you will find is sure to amaze. Mashallah.
Riyadh & The Centre
Wadi Hanifa runs for 120 kilometres north-west to south-east across the Najd region, like a slash through the heart of the country, geographically and politically. A string of antique settlements were founded and nourished beside this riverbed, including Riyadh, which grew to become the modern capital, and Diriyah, the original stronghold of the Saudi dynasty. Around them now are several fun day trips for visitors.
Riyadh
Although Riyadh lacks conventional tourist attractions, there is much more to it than simply novelty interest. It is a city in its infancy, yet already it is the fifth largest in the Middle East, with a population of 6.5m, and full of ambition to become both the leader of its region and a force on the world stage. The conservative centre of power, home of the Royal Court and all that flows from that, is rapidly waking from its prolonged stupor and coming alive.
The whole city has the feel of a building site, and the ultimate concentration of construction is 20km south of the King Khalid International Airport at what is becoming the King Abdullah Financial District. This is the emerging showcase of ninety-four modern skyscrapers, spread over 1,000,000m2, with the 385m-high Public Investment Fund Tower and a contemporary Grand Mosque at its centre. This genuinely world class business district, replete with what they like to call a “lifestyle destination” (basically shops and cafes, where first movers include Joe & the Juice and Sushi Samba), is all served by a brand new six-line metro with eighty-five stations.
The Financial District sits at the north end of King Fahd Road and Olaya Street, which act like a pair of carotid arteries funnelling traffic straight down into the body of the city. Between these two parallel lines is a long backbone of land destined to rival Dubai for glitz and height. Huge plots are set aside for landmark architectural developments, the first of which is Majdoul Tower, a 50-story twisted building.
Currently the tallest structure on the strip is the bottle-opener-shaped 302m-high Kingdom Centre. At its entrance is a shopping mall for luxury brands, and the Four Seasons Hotel, which during Ramadan has a great place for an iftar, the pop-up Ramadan Tent. On the 2nd floor is Al Mamlaka Social Dining, a kind of street food centre with twenty-one outlets sharing communal seating, while up on the 99th floor is the Sky Bridge that links the two sides of the top, where you can get a wonderful panorama.
Al Faisaliah Tower was the first skyscraper in Saudi Arabia, designed by Norman Foster and built by the Bin Laden family business in 2000. At the bottom is the first Harvey Nichols store to open outside Britain. Suspended just below its 267m-tall top is a giant globe, 24m in diameter, that lights up garishly at night. This holds The Globe restaurant, serving high tea from 3-6pm and then dinner from 8pm at the weekends (it is essential to book). Just below that is the Experience, an outdoor 360° viewing platform.
Some 6km south, after King Fahd Road turns into Al Hameid, is Al Murabba Square. This is home to Al Murabba Palace, built in 1936 and the first major structure erected outside the walls of the old city. It was originally the fortress of the founder of the Saudi dynasty, Mohammed bin Saud, but in 1999 the whole area was redeveloped with sculpted pathways and palm gardens and is now the National Museum. This is worth a visit upstairs for a run through the officially sanctioned history of the Saudi state, and downstairs for a giant replica of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, the closest non-Muslims are likely to get for a while yet.
Another 5km south is Masmak, which was once a walled village that formed the basis of what became Riyadh. The walls are long gone, and the most prominent remaining building is the Al Masmak Fortress, dating from 1865. This squat mudbrick fortification, with turrets at each corner, was the scene in 1902 of the Al Saud’s decisive defeat of the rival Al Rashids, one of the most symbolic episodes in the unification of the country.
Also right here is the huge but plain Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque, built in 1992, since when it has hosted the funerals of Saudi rulers. These are restricted to the most senior royals, inevitably since there are roughly 15,000 members of the family, who between them are worth an estimated US$1.5 trillion.
Completely at odds with the way they lived in opulence, many Saudi royals are buried in simple graves among ordinary people in nearby Al Oud cemetery. Kings Abdulaziz, Fahd, Khalid, Faisal, Saud and Abdullah are all here along with many of their wives and children.
Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque is on one side of Al Safa (Justice) Square, better known as “chop, chop square”. This is where until recently public beheadings by a sulthan sword were routinely held, mostly at noon on Fridays. Executions continue behind closed doors, and of the fifty-five countries that retain the death penalty Saudi Arabia uses it fifth most (behind China, Iran, Egypt and Iraq).
The whole area is surrounded by the city’s main souqs. On the north side is the covered maze of Sweigah Trading Market, filled with the cheap clothing and fake bags that you find in all such places. To the east is Thumairi Street, on which is Kingdom Heritage, probably the best general souvenir outlet in the country, as well as Themary Gold Market. At the top of Thumairi Street is a row of tailors where you can get traditional Saudi clothing.
It is still common for women to wear black burqas that veil the face, though abayas in all colours that cover the clothes but not the head are increasingly popular. Formal dress for men is a white thobe with a red ghutrah headdress, and in these shops there are cheap ones that say “Made in China” as well as those by Cerruti, Dunhill and other luxury fashion houses.
Historic Souq Al Zall is a classic warren of little shops in narrow alleys under high ceilings, plus an outdoor flea market, selling carpets from across the region, ouds and perfumes for men and women, leather sandals, spices and dates, baskets and ceramics, incense burners and swords. The paraphernalia of Saudi coffee can be bought here too, including dallah pots, finjal tiny handleless cups, and cardamom seeds. Do not be surprised when the sellers suddenly shut up shop for fifteen minutes in response to the frequent calls to prayer.
Not far from here, up Al Bathaa Road, is Little India. This nest of streets houses the bulk of the city’s South Asian community, which means this is home to dozens of curry houses as well as hundreds of tailor shops that whistle up bespoke suits in 48 hours.
The centre of power in Riyadh today is in the south-west because that is the whereabouts of Al Yamamah Palace, the official residence and office of the King of Saudi Arabia. The seat of the Royal Court is not far from the Majlis Ash Shura or Shura Council, the 150-strong body that in theory advises the King on policy and legislation. Inevitably, they are both hidden behind heavy security.
Nearby is the Ritz-Carlton, one of the most lavish and storied hotels on the planet. It was here in November 2017 that almost 400 of the country’s most wealthy and powerful people were imprisoned in opulence; known as the Sheikhdown, this marked the moment that MBS seized full control of the country. The foyer is a lovely space for a Saudi coffee, and Al Orjouan on the ground floor is the place to be and be seen for a buzzing Friday buffet (from 12.30 to 5). The fact there are a dozen different varieties of date gives you an idea of its scale. The Arabic Garden, Black Magic and Rock Rose signature mocktails are all special, and the star of the show is the iconic ouzi lamb, a whole animal slow cooked with rice and spices that is not carved by knife but ripped apart by gloved hand.
The Ritz-Carlton compound includes the King Abdulaziz International Conference Centre, palatial host of various formal events, the most prominent of which since 2017 has been the annual Financial Investment Initiative, known as “Davos in the Desert”. This attracts political and business elites from around the world who despite what they may say back home are eagerly seeking to curry favour with the emerging might of Saudi Arabia.
In the west of the city, beyond a military checkpoint, is As Safarat, the Diplomatic Quarter. Apart from foreign embassies, luxury residences and the 1364 upscale shopping and dining complex (coming soon), there are several architectural landmarks here. These include the Cultural Palace, which has a spectacular atrium roof, and the Tuwaiq Palace, which has an 800m-long “living wall” that curves around a palm garden overlooking Wadi Hanifa. On Al Kindi Plaza, guarded by armed soldiers, is the DQ Grand Mosque, with built-in coffee shop and cookie store.
Also in the DQ is the Marriott Hotel. This is notable as the only one I know in Riyadh with mixed gender access to the outdoor pool. Some hotels allow mixed access to their gyms, but in evidence they still have a way to go, some segregate women at unreasonable times like 4am or 4pm, and some still refuse entry to women altogether.
Until the advent of MBS, socialising was more or less outlawed in Saudi Arabai, as it was illegal for unrelated men and women to be together in public, while watching movies and listening to pop music was forbidden. As conventional entertainments became allowed, “Riyadh Season” was invented in 2019 to market a series of cultural events in the cooler winter months to encourage people to get out of their homes. Along with street food festivals and graffiti exhibitions, these initially included family attractions the Winter Wonderland funfair and the Qariat Zaman traditional village. Many of these temporary experiments were so successful that they became permanent activities, spawning the need for a Time Out Riyadh, which was launched in 2021 as proof of a new buzz on the streets.
There are two entertainment complexes I recommend that open every winter in “Riyadh Season”; both require advanced booking. The Groves (6pm til 2am) in Al Khuzama Park is a group of four outdoor restaurants, plus cafes and an open-air stage hosting authentic local musicians, all linked by walkways around the gardens.
Not to be confused with Boulevard Riyadh (a shopping district) or Boulevard World (a theme park), Boulevard Riyadh City (6pm to 1am), near Riyadh Park Mall, is set around a huge artificial lake, patterned with colourful dancing fountains, under a sky filled with firework displays and laser shows. Along the east shore, in front of the outdoor events space and as many as a hundred boutique stores, is a row of bistros with terraces facing the promenade that on weekend evenings in particular offer world class people-watching. These include Al Nakheel, Place L’Etoile, HounBeirut, Grand Café and Basta By Toqa, a coffee shop with an upstairs balcony. The restaurants sometimes pipe in live audio from popular TV soap operas, and speakers on the streets play the latest western pop hits with uncensored swearing (I was surprised when I heard Gayle’s abcdefu and Latto’s Big Energy).
Via Riyadh is a collection of year-round exclusive boutiques and premium restaurants in a colourfully-lit semi-outdoor arcade that also hosts the St Regis Hotel. There is a lovely atmosphere here, and of the many notable diners, my favourites include local branches of international classics Chi Spacca for carnivores and Scott’s for pescatarians, as well as classic bistros Les Deux Magots (French), Madeo (Italian) and Raoul’s (New York), plus cousins of those with Michelin stars London’s Gymkhana for curries, and Wolfgang Puck’s Spago for Californian.
Also here is the Vox Renaissance Theatres, advertised as “the most luxurious cinema in the world”. Based on my experience, this is no hyperbole: there are seven screens, each with themed layouts that range from Lionel Messi’s favourite (an Arab home, with shishas included) to Cristiano Ronaldo’s preference (a leafy garden, where you can loaf on beanbags), all with top notch nosh.
Personal favourites among the showpiece restaurants in the centre of town include Bagatelle (Mediterranean beach club vibe), Cipriani (art deco), LPM (lovely terrace), Marble (open-flame steakhouse), Roka (chef’s table), Rüya (great bar) and Yauatcha (terrific atrium).
The staple local food is Levantine mezze, and there are remarkably few Saudi restaurants, though they are growing in number. The national dish is kabsa, rice with spicy meat of camel, lamb or chicken, usually served on a communal platter. Kunafa, creamy milk in shredded pastry, maqshush, bite-sized buckwheat chunks topped with dates or honey, and omali, a kind of bread pudding, are all popular desserts. The traditional homely Saudi culinary experience, with floor seats of colourfully woven rugs and cushions, is found at Najd Village, and the finest modern version is Suhail, which is in a row of cool places that share a lovely patio courtyard at the back.
In addition to eating and shopping, Saudis’ other great pastime is watching sport. Riyadh has two football clubs: Al Hilal and Al Nassr, which in 2023 signed Cristiano Ronaldo for €200m a year. These two plus Al Ittihad and Al Ahli, both in Jeddah, have been pump-primed by PIF to buy other big stars from Europe as the Saudi Pro League attempts to establish itself. It is worth noting that all four also have women’s teams that since 2022 have competed with four others in the KSA Women’s Premier League. The season runs from August to May.
Al Hilal sometimes play at the 22,500-seater Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium in the south, where there is a grandstand on one side only. For big games, they turn out at the 58,000-capacity King Fahd International Stadium out east, also home of the Saudi national team as well as athletics events. You get tickets from the Blue Store App, although they usually go on sale only 48 hours before kick-off and can sell out fast; if you get stuck, you can always buy them from the black market via Grinta Hub.
Al Nassr play at the 25,000-capacity Victory Arena in Al Awwal Park, not far from the RDC tech hub and the excellent Crowne Plaza Hotel where I more or less lived for three years. It is small, but it has a cracking atmosphere with plenty of flares and flags. You can get tickets from the Al Awwal Park App, usually right up to kick-off as it is rarely full.
The Royal Court pulls the centre of gravity of the city westward, and there is little for visitors to see or do in the east. The only point of interest, by the Eastern Ring Road, is Rajhi Mosque, the largest in Riyadh, capable of holding 18,000 men and 2,500 women.
Roughly 20km up north, near the airport, King Salman Park is being landscaped over 13km2, which will make it the largest urban greenfield in the world. Also here is King Abdulaziz Racetrack, home to a 5,000-seat grandstand for weekend turf and dirt horse-races. The Saudi Cup, a Group 1 dirt race over 1,800m, offers the richest purse in world racing since it began in 2020 – US$20m – attracting the Frankie Dettoris and the Ryan Moores if not yet the very best horses.
The Saudi Cup is the society event of the year and an amazing cultural experience. While men create a tidal wave of red ghutras, women are encouraged to sport styles inspired by the heritage of their region. At prayer times, long lines of men kneel with their backs to the track to face Mecca. This is also the best place to hear traditional music, played between races, and to watch the spine-tingling ardha national sword dance, performed triumphantly among the crowd at the after-party.
If that is the epitome of Saudi tradition, contemporary Saudi youth culture is on display nearby at Banban, another 20km north. Every December, this is the venue for the region’s biggest music event, organised by Middle Beast (geddit?). The Soundstorm Festival is like Glastonbury without the rain and mud, though definitely with Portaloos given an extra flood by the Arab bum-gun.
Since 2019, more than 100,000 people come here over three days to bounce around to more than 200 global bands and DJs playing on half-a-dozen stages between 3pm and 3am. One night I came, the Black Eyed Peas, Metallica, Calvin Harris and Tiësto were all on the same bill. There are very few foreigners, and while the kiosks might be limited to fizzy drinks and burgers, I have never seen so many people falling over drunk, and there was more than a bit of molly flying around.
The early editions had an appalling reputation for sexual harassment, hardly surprising given years of repression suddenly unleashed with an energy boosted by illicit alcohol and drugs. This led to the introduction of a network of elevated secure walkways that can be accessed by paying a bit more to get a Very Important Beast pass, though to be honest the women I was with in 2023 and 2024 said they felt quite safe and had more fun in the mosh pits. Dancing with these young people, who are able to do this for the first time in their country’s history, is one of the very best experiences I have had in this country.
Diriyah
Diriyah, technically a different municipality but now effectively a suburb in the west of Riyadh, is the ancestral home of the House of Saud. This is where Mohammed bin Saud founded the Emirate of Diriyah in 1727. With the backing of Muhammad ibn Abd al Wahhab, leader of the Wahhabi Movement of puritanical Sunnis, Diriyah rapidly expanded its territorial control across swathes of the Arabian Peninsula.
Mohammed bin Saud’s eldest son and successor, Abdulaziz, went a step too far in 1802 when he launched an attack on Karbala in what is now south Iraq, a Shi’ite holy city where Hussein ibn Ali, a grandson of the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), is buried. This stirred the Ottomans and Egyptians to retaliate, and their joint invasion put an end to what is recognised as the First Saudi State in 1818 when the mudbrick city of Diriyah was razed to the ground.
The Second & Third Saudi States
After 1818, the Saudis regrouped and regained authority, establishing the Emirate of Najd in 1824, with their capital in Riyadh. This Second Saudi State was less religiously zealous, though it was still based on the Salifi Sunni strand that advocates a return to the pious traditions of the first three generations of Muslims, who are held to exemplify purest Islam. It was also less politically successful, dogged by internal struggles and civil wars that caused its collapse in 1891.
Exiled in Kuwait, Abdulaziz ibn Abdul Rahman determined to restore Saudi rule in Riyadh once again. After capturing Al Masmak Fortress in 1902, he declared himself head of the Third Saudi State, and spent the next three decades unifying the country, resulting in the establishment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932. Known in the west as Ibn Saud, King Abdulaziz, who died in 1953, is today revered as the founder of the modern nation as well as the progenitor of the current dynasty; none but his direct descendants may take the title of His or Her Royal Highness.
In Diriyah, the old city lay abandoned in ruins on the banks of the Wadi Hanifa valley until the rise of MBS. It is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a giga-project under Vision 2030. MBS will become the eighth Saudi king, and the first to be a grandson not a son of King Abdulaziz, who had forty-five boys. For him, Diriyah has become the poster child for his new Saudi Arabia, because it connects the lineage of the present regime to its origins, disentangled from Islam. If you see just one thing in Riyadh, it should be this, marketed as the “Jewel of the Kingdom” for a reason.
The main entrance is between the Angelina and Sarabeth’s coffee shops, both of which offer world-class people-watching. You need to book an online ticket, though it is free from 10am to 4pm when only one portion of the complex is open, and after that you get the price of the ticket knocked off any restaurant bill.
This is Bujairi Terrace, basically the greatest collection of high-end eateries in the Middle East, a sort of Rodeo Drive for foodies. There are twenty-one internationally acclaimed restaurants, including four with sisters that have Michelin stars (Chez Bruno, only for those who really really love truffles, Hakkasan, the Cantonese classic, Long Chim, Thai, and Tatel, Spanish) as well as a couple of excellent Saudi specialists (Maiz and Takya), all built in copycat mudbrick style with outdoor terraces. I come back here time and again, and it has been a labour of love working through every single one of them, though I do not come just for the cuisine and atmosphere among the sculpted walkways and immaculate palms; the vista of the resurrected old city opposite is unparalleled.
From 4pm (until midnight), at the back of the Ministry of Culture a bridge opens so you can walk across the valley from Bujairi Terrace to the other side, where you can wander among the restored historic buildings of Al Turaif. Some date from the fifteenth century, in the Najdi adobe style typical of the central region. They include the prominent Salwa Palace along with dozens of mosques, guest houses and bath houses. There is also a lovely Café Bateel.
In contrast, near to the Bujairi-Turaif site are several symbols of modernity. Past the big flagpole are the track for Formula E, motor races for electric cars, and Jax, the creative space that hosts avant-garde exhibitions including the Contemporary Art Biennale. Also here is Beast House, Riyadh’s very first private members’ club, where it is easy for walk-ins to get a seat.
King Khalid Royal Reserve
Roughly 60km north of Riyadh, just beyond King Salman Park and King Abdulaziz Racetrack, is the 1,200km² of land enclosed in the King Khalid Royal Reserve. Home to desert fauna and flora, including scorpions and Arabian oryx, the most iconic creature on the Arabian Peninsula, this is the largest of several protected wildlife parks around Riyadh.
It is not really ready to take visitors yet, with infrastructure and attractions in their infancy. However, it does have various small campsites that offer activities including riding horses through the valleys and hiking with guides along the sedimentary escarpments.
Even if you do not stay here, and instead come on a day trip, as I did, you still need to order a guide in advance to be allowed past the security guards; you must then bring your passport on the day. Bookings can be arranged either by a local agent – I used Abdulrahman Almobrad on +966 058 0097131 – or directly by a campsite, such as Navigation Club Tourism on +966 055 3303226.
Just opposite the entrance to the Reserve and near the city limits checkpoint (all major arteries in Riyadh have them), is a long stretch of hundreds if not thousands of large traditional Arab tents. They are hired by local people by the day or for weekends and each one is enveloped by its own canvas fence in an attempt to mimic the privacy they insist on in town. Further along Thumamah Road is a line of shacks renting quad bikes for zooming around the dunes beyond.
Edge Of The World
About 90k north-west of Riyadh is Shai’ib Kharah, a valley that runs for 15km until it reaches the foot of the spectacular 300m-tall rocky cliffs that were raised by shifts in the Arabian tectonic plate. This is Jebel Fihrayn, coined the “Edge of the World” because of its uninterrupted views across the desert plain all the way to the horizon.
To get here, it takes two-and-a-half hours in a 4×4 from Riyadh. After shooting up the highway for an hour you suddenly turn off-road and into the desert itself on stones and sand, with bumpy twists and turns across dry riverbeds through deep gorges past Bedouin shepherding their goats and camels. There is nothing official here – no signs, no entry gate, no cafe, no toilet – and since some foreign tourists fell from the cliffs in 2021 the track near the end has been deliberately blocked. So here you jump out and hike the remaining fifteen minutes or so to reach the top. It is completely exposed to the elements, and there will not be another soul here with you, but it is a great place for a picnic.
Qasab, Shagra, Ushaiger & Buraidah
To the west of Riyadh is a trio of historic walled villages of brown mudbrick houses with white detailing, in the classic Najd style, that make an excellent day trip. Either there or back, I strongly recommend a pit stop at the Classy Pigeon, a fabulously authentic restaurant in the little town of Huraymila, about 80km from Riyadh, that serves only the bird in question.
The first of the towns on the schedule, Qasab, more than 150km from Riyadh, is a little place with not much more to see than a prince’s small palace with a tidy mosque next door. It is worth the sojourn though because of the rare geological feature just out of town: salt flats in the middle of the desert. Large squares have been dug into the water table, creating pools of water that evaporate under the sun, leaving a residue that looks like snow on the sand. If you nip into the Zad refinery, they will happily give you a bottle of the finished product packaged for retail as an unusual souvenir.
Another 40km on is the town of Shagra, founded at least as far back as the thirteenth century and known to be one of the oldest settlements in the Najd region. The old town’s high walls, both around the perimeter and along the warren of sandy-floored alleyways, have all been immaculately reconstructed, although most of what is behind them has been left untouched for decades. With a smattering of exceptions, this vast area is stuffed with historically significant and potentially spectacular mudbrick buildings that are deserted and crumbling.
It is haunting to walk these alleys, and the only way to find a good view of it all is to get up high. We pushed on a few gates until one gave way, wandered in, found an open door, and climbed up to the roof. Five or ten years from now this could be, should be, a major attraction, no doubt renovated to an immaculate standard, so to see it in its current raw state before the cafes and gift shops take over feels like a privileged reward for making the effort to come here.
The only part of ancient Shagra that has been extensively restored already is its Helwa Bazaar, a pleasant square of colonnaded shops with dozens of cushion-covered café benches in the middle.
Just 20km more is the smaller satellite village of Ushaiger (literally “Little Shagra”), where the dwellings are of similar vintage. Here, some have been left to ruin, and others, often right next door, have been reconditioned perfectly over the past decade. The inhabited ones tend to have open doors that welcome visitors to come sit on the floor, chat, eat dates, drink coffee, and as likely as not end in a photo shoot for the owners’ Instagram feed. It could not be further from a contrived tourist experience and one of the highlights of my time in Saudi.
There is a cute mosque, a little bazaar, and two wells that despite the advent of a rough-and-ready mechanised pumping system, still provide water for the village in basically the same way they have done for centuries. There is also a surprisingly enchanting makeshift heritage museum, Al Salim, displaying knick-knacks from the properties; I normally loath those places but this one has a genuine charm.
If you were to keep going for another 180km, you would come to the city of Buraidah, which is equidistant between the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf. It is visited primarily at the start of August each year, when it holds an annual festival that amounts to the biggest date market in the world, trading about 200,000 tonnes farmed from more than 8m palm trees. Saudi Arabia has more palm trees than any country in the world and produces about a quarter of all dates on the planet.
Qiddiya
Starting again back in Riyadh, it is 20km south-west, right on the city limits, where stood Souq Al Jamal, one of the largest camel markets on the Arabian Peninsula. However, such old-world charms do not fit into the current vision of Saudi Arabia so it and others like it have been demolished by the powers-that-be.
On the site of Souq Al Jamal there is now a massive prefab development for migrant labourers to live while they work on Qiddiya, beginning roughly 40km further south-west. This is another Vision 2030 giga-project, “Entertainment City”, planned to be on the same scale as Las Vegas, full of theme-parks with typical Gulf attractions such as indoor ski slopes as well as a new Formula 1 Grand Prix racetrack. There will also be a new sports stadium, to be shared by Riyadh’s two major football teams, which will host the 2034 World Cup Final.
Lake Khararah appears briefly at the end of winter each year if there has been decent rain, which there has been increasingly in recent years, a phenomenon connected to climate change. It is prettily situated at the bottom of steep dunes, and it attracts hordes of locals who drive out to spread carpets near the water’s edge to enjoy weekend picnics. You are certain to be the only foreigner and will undoubtedly be offered Saudi coffee and dates by almost everyone. Although the desert here suffers from excess plastic and litter, the red sand is stunning.
There are several places to rent quad bikes all around the outskirts of Riyadh, including at Lake Khararah, but by far the best is a bit further out at Wadi Nisma. Adherents to EU-style health and safety standards should look away now. There are no helmets, no tracks and no rules. On Friday afternoons there are hundreds of people, from tearaway teenagers to mums-in-burqas, zooming about willy-nilly all over the rolling sand dunes with fabulous views of the cliff faces that shelter Riyadh beyond. Too much fun.
Nofa Wildlife Park
About 80km south-west of Riyadh, in the middle of the desert, is Nofa Wildlife Park, which is worth visiting for unusually close encounters with exotic creatures. There are ostriche, gazelle and antelope galore, as well as elephants, giraffe and zebra, plus lions, Bengal tigers and white tigers all easily found in drive-through enclosures. The stars of the show are the rare Pygmy hippos that you can even feed. It is open for public visits every Saturday, and private tours Sunday to Thursday, 8.30am to 3.30pm all year round. The two-hour drives in caged trucks need to be booked in advance.
Jeddah & The West
The west is the religious heartland and historic trading region of the country. Home of the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) and site of the Two Holy Mosques, at Mecca and Medina, as well as host of Jeddah, the second city of the nation, largely built by immigrants on relatively liberal foundations. In addition, the west has the spectacular Hejaz Mountains, where you will find in particular the pretty town of Taif, and the still as yet relatively unexplored and undeveloped gorgeous Red Sea coastline and aquatic environs.
Jeddah
The motto of the Bride of the Red Sea, as it is known, is “Jeddah Ghair”, “Jeddah Is Different”. The maxim does not actually add “From Riyadh” but the implication could not be clearer.
For centuries a major port for Indian Ocean trade routes, and the entry point for pilgrims to Mecca just 80km east, Jeddah has historically offered an open door to the world, and more than half its 4 million citizens are immigrants. This multi-culturalism has forged a more liberal society (where, for instance, shorts and shisha were acceptable long before they were allowed in the stuffy capital) and a more dynamic culture (not least because the seafront creates an open-air playground). This is Barcelona to Riyadh’s Madrid.
On most flights in, you are likely to be surrounded by men in white ihram robes (like a towel loosely wrapped around), revealing that they are on pilgrimage; this dress is to signify that in front of God there is no class or social differences. Coming from Dubai, flights pass directly over Mecca itself, and when this moment is announced it is the signal for mass praying. The airport in Jeddah is about 20km north of the old city.
The inception of the city was in its south at Al Balad, the Historic District that is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A wall was built here in the sixteenth century to protect citizens from Portuguese attack, and although that was torn down in the 1940s many of its gates remain. The most important of these is Bab Makkah, as it is from here that pilgrims traditionally began their long walk to the Masjid al Haram in Mecca. The Al Shaf’I Mosque and the Hanafi Mosque Minaret are also significant landmarks.
These cobbled streets and public squares fell into dilapidation in the 1970s as wealthier locals moved out, but the whole area is currently benefitting from sympathetic renovation. This has already begun to restore the hundreds of iconic tower houses put up by the mercantile elite in the late nineteenth century, which combine Red Sea coastal traditions of coral stone walls along with exotic foreign influences most obvious in the elaborately decorated lattice wooden window-shutters. Three of the best examples are Naseef House (the former home of Saudi Arabia’s founding father King Abdulaziz; the tree outside was the only one in Jeddah until as recently as 1920), Matbouli House, and Sharbatly House, all of which you can go inside. At the top of Sharbatly is the excellent Medd Café & Roastery with outside seating and views over the area below.
Despite the continuing renovation work, the streets are pristine and authentic, and the atmosphere is warm and welcoming. Souq Al Badw in Al Balad is the country’s biggest market, a maze selling everything from Middle Eastern carpets to Western football shirts. It is of course closed on Friday mornings and at its best in the evenings.
Legend has it that Hawah (Eve), the first woman, was somehow buried in Jeddah. In a cemetery near Al Balad there is allegedly a tomb 120m long, 6m high and 3m wide; it was occasionally mentioned in classic travel journals of the late nineteenth century, though apparently it is long decayed. I cannot verify this as the cemetery is open only to Muslims.
Apart from the Historic District, the main attraction of Jeddah to visitors is its gorgeous and lively Corniche that is separated into several non-contiguous segments along the Red Sea coastline.
The Southern Corniche is as much as 45km south of the city, beyond the Jeddah Islamic Port, where the cruise ships dock. They are subject to much local gossip because on them, in Saudi waters, it is thought that you can purchase and consume alcohol, the first place in the country you can do so. Not far from here are scores of streets reduced to rubble. This was the neighbourhood of Petromin that was controversially cleared more or less overnight of its slums in 2022.
The Al Corniche Al Janoubi road runs south right by the coast for about 10km where the water for about 2km out to sea is a bright turquoise lagoon until it hits a white line of surf breaking above a reef parallel with the shore, beyond which the ocean turns deep blue. However, the scrubby beaches are windswept and desolate until Al Saif, the last 2.5km, where there are sculpted pathways dotted with thatched parasols, wooden huts, concrete benches and occasional drinks kiosks to support the dozen or so local families that might come down to picnic for the day. I doubt many foreigners have ever been here.
Back in the city centre, the Middle Corniche begins just above Al Balad, not far from the 171m-high flagpole, which was the tallest in the world until 2021.
The road runs on reclaimed land north from the Park Hyatt and the Intercontinental, dressed all the way with contemporary and adventurous public art, to the Ritz-Carlton. The Ritz-Carlton is the most imposing hotel in the city, and the Karamel Lounge on the Mezzanine is a grand place for Saudi coffee and dates. Through Al Hamra district, the Corniche continues past the Hassan Enany Mosque to Al Salam Royal Palace, which since completion in 1982 has been hidden behind high walls.
Just below the mosque is Art Plaza, home to many modern statues, and above it is Al Andalus Garden, aka Jeddah Sculpture Museum, where you will find larger pieces by celebrity sculptors including Joan Miro (notably his Project for a Monument, from 1981) and Henry Moore. Do not be deterred by the sign saying “private road: no entry for unauthorized” as you can drive down quite a long way before the checkpoint to the Al Salam Royal Palace.
The coast path here offers world class people watching as it is full of life all day, and even more so all evening, when it buzzes with families having fun, men playing board games at their portable tables and chairs, women picnicking on rugs, and kids kicking footballs or zipping around on bikes. From here you also get the best view of King Fahd Fountain, at 260m the highest in the world by some 60m, a giant spout that sits at the end of a promontory in the middle of the bay and streams water into the night.
Inland from here is King Saud Mosque, the biggest of the more than 2,300 in the city. Completed in 1987, its white walls cover an area of almost 10,000m2 and its prayer hall can take up to 5,000 worshippers.
The Northern Corniche is another 10km up the coast. It starts at Al Nakheel, one of the city’s oldest and most loved authentic Middle Eastern restaurants and shisha joints, with a lovely terrace that is a great place in the evenings as the sun goes down over the Red Sea. Not far away is Naranj, a popular Levantine eatery with a relaxed atrium. The Corniche continues through Ash Shati district, then past Al Shallal Theme Park, where women in burqas can be found these days having fun on the carousel, Angelina tea and pastry shop, and Fakieh Aquarium.
This part of the sea front is newer and better quality and, especially on Friday afternoons and evenings, rammed with families promenading. It is noticeable that many men here are in western dress – jeans or even shorts and T-shirts – though the vast majority of women are still covered in black. You will surely be the only foreigner and while many people will stare at you a bit, especially if you are a woman, some will wave and a few brave ones will say hello – we have even had a rasping Whazzzzuuuuuup – but most are inquisitive and everyone is friendly.
Near the long thin island that runs parallel to the beach that is usually dotted with picnicking families, there are several gigantic skeletons of unfinished buildings, including a Four Seasons and a Raffles, rotting away. These were all abandoned when their developers were arrested and stripped of their privileges in the 2017 Skeikhdown. However, the Rosewood (which includes the Sky Lounge that may have the very best views of the sunset on this coast) and the Movenpick (which has a Nobu) did manage to open.
Inland from here is the Boulevard shopping mall, replete with Armani, Gucci, Prada and all those standard upscale brands in the kind of swanky architecture that you would expect to find in Miami or LA.
The section of coast road north of here is wider and known as the New Corniche (AKA Jeddah Waterfront) because much of it was redeveloped and opened as recently as 2017. The big Jeddah sign is popular for selfies, and the cycling lane and jogging track under sheltering palm trees in the centre between the up and down lines of traffic are usually buzzing with people.
In addition to the series of five star hotels, including the Venue, the Waldorf Astoria, the Hilton and the Shangri-La, there are a number of brand new and highly prized apartment complexes around here. The scene is completed by the lovely little Island Mosque, built as part of the public art developments in the mid-80s to spruce up the area.
The biggest thing to happen to Jeddah in recent times is the Formula 1 Grand Prix, and for weeks either side of the race the roads above the Red Sea Mall are closed to accommodate it. It is a large-scale event, even by F1 standards, with the same fairground attractions and the same shawarma kebab stalls and the same electronic dance music that you get at sporting events all over the world. I was privileged to be at the first one, in 2021, and the only difference I spotted was that the crowd is even more passionate here than elsewhere because this is all so fresh and exciting to them. For a full hour before the start, almost everyone was standing on their seats singing along at the top of their voices with every pop track the DJ played. I have been to major sporting events all over the world and this atmosphere was right up there with the best. Then they all shot off to the post-race midnight Justin Bieber concert behind the grandstand. I do not know if this is what is meant by sportswashing, but this young crowd took huge strides into our world by experiencing the biggest sporting event and biggest pop music gig ever to be held in their country.
At other times of the year the track is still locked away behind a chicken-wire fence, even though it is billed as a street race. However, it is possible to cross a bridge over the top of it (the entrance is hard to find but it is just past the Raddison Blu) to reach the Art Promenade. This is a marble-paved pedestrianised walkway with trendy boutiques and modern food outlets between the ocean and track, which at night is floodlit. This path leads to the Al Rahmah Mosque, known as the floating masjid, which cannot be reached when F1 is in town. This icon of the city, built in 1985, sits on the sea on stilts and is particularly evocative at sunset.
Across the inlet of water on a promontory is the main building of the Jeddah Yacht Club, housing a Marina Social by Jason Atherton. The yacht club is not for sail boats, more for superyachts and partying. The gate opens at 6pm every night and on Marina Walk, around the basin where boats are moored, are numerous places to shop and eat (the most mellow are Amore Café and Obo Beach House) as well as an Edition Hotel (which has a fabulous rooftop chillout). The whole area is laser-lit at night in bright blue.
Nearby is another excellent restaurant, the Lebanese Anis, not far from King Abdulaziz International Airport. Just north is the long finger of Obhur Bay, the creek pointing east, perpendicular to the sea. On the south side there are often cars parked bumper-to-bumper all the way as people picnic on the crumbling promenade above the water.
Inland, at the east end of the creek, is the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium, currently the largest in the country with 62,000 seats. It is the shared home of the other two PIF-owned football teams in the Saudi Pro League, Al Ittihad and Al Ahli. It also hosted the final of the FIFA Club World Cup in 2023, though I counted there were 20,000 empty seats that night.
On the north side of the creek it is altogether more exclusive, and amid the gated villas is Cocos, an atmospheric outdoor restaurant right on the water that serves international food (even though almost no international visitors ever come here), including a 4th of July American Burger.
There are several members’ beach clubs round the corner on the Red Sea coast. The best appear to be Silver Sands, Oia and Indigo, which we managed to enter by booking a table at their beachside restaurant. To get in we had to pass a strict security interview on the door and allow our mobile phones to be locked in a sealed bag to prevent us taking photos; the banging house beats, infinity pool and young women tanning in bikinis were straight out of Dubai. These places are spreading fast. Anyone can buy a day-pass to Jeddah Waves, where you can strip off in the sun, play beach volleyball and mess about on jet skis, just like in beach resorts all over the world. Like a lot of recent initiatives here, this was born out of the temporary “Jeddah Season” marketing drive in the winter of 2021-22, a major attempt to get the city going again after Covid, and it has proved so popular that it just never closed.
On the corner, opposite the Naxos Bay women-only beach club, is Jeddah Tower, formerly called Kingdom Tower. This was planned to be the tallest building in the world, the first soaring beyond a kilometre into the sky, designed by the American architect Adrian Smith, who also designed the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Construction began on April Fool’s Day 2013. However, it stopped in 2018, after MBS’ anti-corruption drive, when it was just one-third built.
North of Jeddah Tower on either side of Prince Abdullah Al Fiasal Street are a clutch of the dozen or so diving centres currently operating in the city. They are all just getting going, and the first time we went we had to contact several before anybody finally replied. We ended up trying the biggest, Al Haddad Scuba, and have since been back with them many times. The operators all use the marina up the road, where they have to stop to register all passengers at the tumbledown coastguard before heading out on hour-long rides to the dive sites. So far, around here there are some pretty corals but not many fish.
There are also a couple of liveaboards that go from Jeddah – Almonda and Saudi Explorer – usually heading south towards the Farasan Islands in round trips that take a week or more. Both advertise hot tubs and – drum roll – alcohol. I assume they are permitted to serve it when they are in international waters.
Finally, about 80km north-east of the city is Asfan Fortress, an eighteenth-century Ottoman hilltop hideaway that overlooks an historic caravan route and now sits in the middle of a spaghetti junction road system. It is worth diverting on the way to Medina or King Abdullah Economic City as it is rather pretty.
Mecca
From Jeddah it takes about an hour to drive due east to Mecca, usually spelled here as Makkah, meaning the Blessed City. This is of course where the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) was born in 570, making it the holiest place in all of Islam. Tragically, non-Muslims are not allowed even to enter the city, never mind the most important mosque in the world, so we are routed around it via a by-pass.
However, the sign directing non-Muslims to exit is not as clear on the road from Jeddah as it is on some other approaches, so on one occasion we totally missed it and ended up at the main checkpoint. We approached slowly and with caution as we had read that attempting to enter Mecca deliberately can lead to significant penalties. When we told the guy in the booth that we had mistakenly not seen the turning and were trying to drive to Taif, he could not have been more friendly and waved us through, saying we should keep going until there is no option but to turn off.
This was an unexpected privilege and with complete respect we soon drove under this impressive double-arch monument inscribed with Arabic text. On the right-hand arch it says: “Indeed, the first house of mankind established for mankind was that at Mecca, blessed and a guidance for the worlds”. On the left-hand arch it says: “And proclaim to the people the Hajj; they will come to you on foot and on every lean camel; they will come from every distant pass”.
Soon after that is Mecca Gate. Built in 1979, the Gate is formed by two wings meeting at the apex, where sits an open book (its pages are each 16.5m long and 26m wide); this is the Qur’an on a rehal or bookstand.
We soon got a view of the fourth tallest building in the world, the 601m-high Abraj Al-Bait Royal Clock Tower, at the centre of a complex of seven skyscraper hotels. It was built on the site of the eighteenth-century Ottoman Ajyad Fortress, which was controversially demolished in 2002, as part of a US$15bn investment to provide modern facilities for pilgrims. There are reports that the urban redevelopment of Mecca to cash in on the volume of pilgrims-cum-tourists is felt by many to be at odds with the sanctity of the Holy City.
Mecca is a city of concentric ring roads with the Masjid al Haram, the Grand Mosque, the most sacred site in Islam, right in the bullseye between the twin hills of Safa and Marwah. Of course, we turned off to Taif long before we got anywhere near there as it would have been inappropriate. Meanwhile, the best we have is the giant replica model in the National Museum in Riyadh.
The Kaaba & the Grand Mosque
According to Islamic history, the famous black Kaaba was originally constructed by the Prophets Ibraheem/Ibrahim (Abraham) and Ismail/Ismaeel (Ishmael), then rebuilt by the Quraysh tribe in pre-Islamic 608. (There is an excellent Rest Is History podcast on the veracity of this notion.) It is of course the Qibla or direction of prayer for Muslims everywhere.
The Grand Mosque has been erected around the Kaaba: it is believed initially during the reign of the second caliph, Umar, between 634 and 644, though it has certainly since been renovated many times. The current structure largely dates to the sixteenth century. It can hold as many as 4 million worshippers, and it is filled to overflowing during the Hajj or pilgrimage, the fifth Pillar of Islam. Pilgrims circle the Kaaba seven times in an anti-clockwise direction, an act known as Tawaf.
Despite the religious reverence of Mecca, it is not beyond commercialisation too. For example, a huge range of I Heart Mecca souvenirs are on sale in airport duty free shops across the country.
Mina is a town 8km southeast of Mecca. To accommodate pilgrims come for the Hajj, more than 100,000 air-conditioned tents have been built in the valley, capable of sleeping 3 million people. This is also where worshippers throw pebbles at three pillars or Jamarat as part of the Hajj ritual to commemorate the stoning of the devil.
Mount Arafat, only 70m high, is about 20km southeast of Mecca. It is believed that this is where the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) delivered his Farewell Sermon to his followers. Some Muslims also believe that this is where Adam and Eve were reunited on earth after falling from Heaven and a pillar marks that spot. In any case, it is where pilgrims come on the most important day of the Hajj invoking Allah to forgive their sins.
Sadly, Mina and Mount Arafat are out-of-bounds for non-Muslims.
Taif
The principal reason for passing by Mecca from Jeddah is to reach the lovely town of Taif in the Hejaz Mountains. Highway 15 runs on east the other side of Mecca. This is also known as the Road to 9/11 as Osama bin Laden recruited fifteen of the nineteen hijackers from villages along this route.
It is 60km to the little town of Al Hada, which takes an hour because of the hairpin bends that wind up to an elevation of 1,800m not far from Jabal Hada, at 2,000m the tallest in the range. The Halawan Bridge is especially impressive. Just above here are fruit and veg sellers, able to grow local produce because of the unusually temperate climate at altitude, much of which is bought by visitors to feed the baboons that litter the road. There is a Meridien Hotel at the top, as well as a telefric cable car and plenty of hiking trails.
It is twenty minutes along the top of the range to Taif, known as the summer capital of Saudi Arabia, because temperatures here rarely exceed 35°C (I know, as cold as that) so visitors come to escape the 50°C furnace below. There cannot be many foreigners though because the road signs here are only in Arabic. The place to stay is the Intercontinental.
Taif is also known as the City of Roses because of its industrial-scale husbanding of the flower. Five wealthy families own most of the farms – Al Ghuraybi, Al Kamal, Al Qadi, Al Qureishi and Al Solhi – and their factories are all open to visitors. You can wander the beautiful rose bushes, drink rose tea, and feel the heat of the furnace as rose water is distilled into a juice suitable for manufacturing. The most prestigious bloom is the pink 30-petal Damask Rose that has been appropriated by several luxury perfume brands, including Chanel and Hermes, as well as Arabian Oud, of course. The Taif Rose Festival, held in March-April every year in Arruddaf Park in the south of the city, always makes a big media splash locally.
In the north-east of the city is ancient Souq Okaz, the largest and best-known of the pre-Islamic bazars, where sheiks once held conferences with their tribes and hosted political meetings with allies and rivals alike. It is usually closed but there is a two-week market festival to honour this history in June-July every year.
Medina
Unlike Mecca, non-Muslims are permitted to enter Medina, usually spelled locally as Madinah. That has been true only since 2021, though I have never come across any others who have been. Yet it is a traditional tourist town of the kind you find everywhere, and it is one of my favourite cities to visit in the whole country. There are lots of things to see and do, there is even a hop-on-hop-off tour bus to take you from site to site if you like that sort of thing, and there are colourful ice cream vans, US-franchised fast-food joints and local souvenir stores galore. The only thing that makes it different to any other tourist town on the planet is that these activities are aimed directly at Muslims and packaged as a religious pilgrimage.
We spent two days here between Christmas and New Year, peak time for a mass influx of worshippers for Umrah, and we did not see another non-Muslim while we were here. I must admit that when we first arrived, I was not sure where we would be allowed to go, what we would be allowed to see, or how we would be received. In reality, of course, we could go almost everywhere and see almost everything, and while we were keen not to attract attention to ourselves (in any case women need to cover their heads around the holy sites, which comprise much of the city), people either ignored us altogether or were welcoming as always in this country.
It was in 622 that the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) made his 500km Hijra or migration from Mecca to Yathrib, 450km north, the event that gave rise to the Muslim faith. Yathrib was soon after changed to Medina, or Taibah al Taibah, meaning the “City of Cities”, because it became the capital of the first Islamic state.
Like Mecca, it is a city surrounded by the Hejaz Mountains, with a road system that fans out in concentric circles. The Masjid Al Nabawi, the Prophet’s Mosque, the second built under the guidance of Mohammed (PBUH), in 622, is in the dead centre of the First Ring Road.
Although non-Muslims are not allowed inside the building itself, these days it is acceptable to just walk through the gates into the squares, and nobody will bat an eyelid.
This area is known as Haram, meaning sanctuary. It is unsurprisingly abuzz morning, noon and night with pilgrims, and it is also astonishingly integrated. Although genders are segregated to pray inside, out here they mix freely, praying, picnicking and taking selfies together (there is even an Instagram frame for the purpose) under beautifully designed awnings. At night it is all bathed in warm light, creating an even more welcoming atmosphere. It is also obvious there are nationalities here from all over the world: there are very few Saudi ghutra and even relatively few burqas visible, drowned by the different national dress of Muslims from North Africa, Central Asia and South Asia, who are all jumbled together, as presumably are Sunni and Shia.
The centrepiece of the mosque is its iconic Green Dome, under which is the tomb of Mohammed (PBUH) himself as well as two of his Companions, Abu Bakr and Umar, which continues to be guarded by African eunuchs. In 1909, this became the first place on the Arabian Peninsula to see electric lighting.
On the west side of the mosque is Al Manakh Square, a vast open space that hosts an occasional hawkers’ market, near the principal entrance, Al Salam Gate, the Gate of Peace. During times of prayer, all the gates to the grounds are guarded by armed soldiers, so we retreated to stand outside the railings. From here, being the only non-Muslims among 1,500,000 people kneeling in lines to pray in synch to the calls of Salah from the minarets, was an awesome experience. There are 1.9 billion Muslims, a quarter of the world, and this is their second most holy place, the most revered that we non-believers can get to. It was a spine-tingling privilege to experience this with them.
On the east side is the Al Baqi Cemetery, final resting place of many of the nearest relatives of the Prophet (PBUH), including his daughter Fatimah, and his leading Companions. The original monuments here were demolished by the Emirate of Diriyah in 1806, and they were rebuilt by the Sultanate of Nejd in 1926 under the austere constraints of Wahhabi interpretations of Islamic law on idolatry. Non-Muslims are permitted to visit, though women are not allowed. Entry is restricted to short intervals after prayer times when there is a huge crush to climb the ramp and squeeze through the bottleneck gate.
On the north side are gift shops selling replicas of the Two Holy Mosques, as well as eyeliner and nail polish squarely targeted at women in burqas. Here also are many of the five-star hotels used by pilgrims – notably the Movenpick, Oberoi, Pullman and Sofitel – that understandably during the seasons of Hajj and Umrah need to be booked well in advance. The Hilton is worth visiting for its second floor restaurant, which has a non-descript international buffet but blistering views of the Prophet’s Mosque. Our waiter told us we were the first non-Muslims he had ever seen there.
From the south side, there is a new 3km pedestrian boulevard – Quba Walkway – loaded with abaya stores and tourist trinket outlets as well as local food stalls among the Dunkin Doughnuts, KFCs and Starbucks. I recommend walking one direction then grabbing a golf cart back. Again, it comes alive at night.
At the other end of this path is Quba Mosque, thought to have been the very first masjid in Islam, built in 622, when the Prophet (PBUH) himself is believed to have laid stones in its foundations. It has been renovated and extended through the ages, now looking contemporary and impressive. It currently occupies 13,500m² and accommodates up to 20,000 worshippers. It has been defended since 1915 by nearby Quba Castle.
Back near the start of Quba Walkway is Al Ghamamah Mosque, built in 712, eighty years after the death of the Prophet (PBUH). It has historic significance as it is believed to mark the spot in 631 where Mohammed (PBUH) first performed an Eid Prayer.
Like much of this area, Al Ghamamah Mosque is littered by pigeons, which children are encouraged to feed with seeds sold by older ladies. This adds to the scruffy feel made much worse by the fact that swathes of the First Ring Road are a chaotic mess of highway repairs and construction sites: ancient hotels and museums are being renovated, new ones built, and the carriageway is undergoing a much-needed overhaul to stop it feeling like Mecca’s poorer cousin. How long this has been going on, and how much longer the chaos might last, is anybody’s guess.
Outside this central area, there are of course hundreds of mosques, but not that many are on the pilgrim circuit. The large and white Masjid Al Qiblatain, by the Second Ring Road, northwest of Masjid Al Nabawi, is on the tour because this spot has played a pivotal role in Islamic history. It is believed by Muslims to be where in 624 Mohammed (PBUH) received a command to change the direction of prayer, qibla, from the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem to Masjid al Haram in Mecca. The mosque on this site built in 623 was one of the very few to have contained two mihrabs, indicating the qibla, facing in different directions. Sadly, that mosque was overhauled in 1987, though there is still a cross-vault to symbolise the transition from one qibla to another. To take a look at that, this was the only mosque in Medina I chose to go inside, encouraged by worshippers outside to do so. However, it is also the only place where I faced any negativity, when one man said to me “are you a Christian? you should not be here” so I promptly left.
There are no other mosques in Medina that date from the days of the Prophet (PBUH). However, there is a heavily promoted cluster of them not far from Masjid Al Qiblatain, on the site of the Battle of Al Khandaq, which took place in 627. This was a major clash in the war the Muslims of Medina were fighting at that time against the Quraysh, the pre-Islamic ruling clan of Mecca. Legend has it that faced by a Quraysh advance, the Muslims dug a trench here to defend themselves, leading to a twenty-day heroic siege before the invaders withdrew.
This cluster is marketed as the “Seven Mosques” though nobody seems to know why since there are in fact only six. They were built around 720 and by far the largest is another white construction, Al Fat’h or Al Ahzab Mosque, which sits at the foot of Sela Mountain, below a crumbling battlement. Each of the other five are tiny stone brick buildings named after relatives and Companions of Mohammed (PBUH): Fatima Mosque, Abu Bakr Al Siddiq Mosque, Ali ibn abi Talib Mosque, Umar ibn Al Khattab Mosque, and Salman Al Farisi Mosque.
Not far from here is the architecturally and historically significant Ottoman Railway Station, which is currently waiting to be turned into a museum. This was the end of the Hejaz rail line, a narrow-gauge track that ran 1,300km all the way from Damascus, linking the Ottoman Empire with the holiest shrines of Islam, though the building of the final section on to Mecca was blocked by the outbreak of World War One.
About 4km north of Masjid Al Nabawi, 12km clockwise around the Second Ring Road from Masjid Al Qiblatain, is the most fun site in the city: the valley in front of 1,077m-high Uhud Mountain. The Battle of Uhud was another episode in the Muslim-Quraysh War, this time in 625. With seven hundred Muslim fighters close to victory, their rear-guard disobeyed Mohammed (PBUH) by abandoning their positions to collect spoils from their fleeing enemy, allowing the 3,000-strong Quraysh to encircle them and secure an improbable triumph that has gone down in Islamic folklore.
The small mound on which the Muslims took their last stand, known as Jabal al Rumah or Archers’ Hill, is a major stop off for pilgrims, who climb all over it to get a view of the battlefield.
Next to it is the Martyrs’ Cemetery, the burial place of seventy shuhada killed during the battle. The most notable of those is Hamza ibn Abdul Mutalib, posthumously decreed by the Prophet (PBUH) as the Master of Martyrs. There are no gravestones but the burial ground behind the fence is treated with extreme reverence.
To commemorate all this, Masjid Shuhada was built in 2017, and has proved a great hit with pilgrims. In its grounds are rows of tourist souvenir stalls selling everything from jewellery and watches to beach bags and fresh dates.
There are lots of places of religious and historic significance in Medina. As I said, in the end, it is a classic tourist town, with these tribal battles adorned with Islamic significance, visited by coach parties on package tours just like anywhere else. For the non-Muslim adventure traveller, it is a genuine honour to be able to join Islamic pilgrims who come from all over the world to pay their respects.
Red Sea
Saudi Arabia is blessed with 2,000km of Red Sea coastline. Much of it is graced by undeveloped sandy beaches and unexplored dive sites, a paradise-in-waiting, though some of it has become a metonym for white elephant oddness.
About 130km up the coast from Jeddah is King Abdullah Economic City, one of half-a-dozen original mega-projects launched as far back as 2005, and the only one of those ever to get off the ground. However, it never got very far off the ground: it was intended to become an investment and manufacturing hub with a population of 2m, but today still fewer than 10,000 people live here.
On the edge of this ghost town is a vast and ornate train station, a stop on the Mecca to Medina high speed line. Near that is a checkpoint, and to get past that you are supposed to complete in advance a Registration Form. That said, when we pulled up at the security barriers to KAEC, pronounced cake, the guard did not even bother asking for ours and just waved us through. It is then a 15km drive down Hejaz Boulevard past flat sand and occasional brown villas behind compound walls to Bay La Sun, which amounts to the tourist centre.
There is a beautiful ocean, a deep blue lagoon close to shore kept tranquil by a long coral reef that forces the surf to break white in a line a few hundred metres out, and there is also a tidy beach, on which sit a dozen or so women in burqas grouped with their children. On the front there are a score or more shop fronts for what may be food joints, though only Bert’s Bistro and the Baskin Robbins are open, serving a handful of diners at tables outside. This is the kind of desolate place where the palm trees and flower beds beneath are kept immaculate but there are almost no people around to enjoy them. There is a pleasant boardwalk that heads off past a rusting KAEC sign, a couple of glass and steel The Views apartment and hotel complexes and the Yam little private beach club where swimsuits are allowed, to a garden full of topiarised camels and elephants and so on. Apart from the port at the other end of town, that is about it. Definitely one of the weirdest places I have been and worth a quick stop for that.
KAEC is the setting for Dave Eggers’ comic novel A Hologram for the King. Written in 2012, it reveals much about the Saudi of that time and of now. First, it pokes fun at such grandiose endeavours as KAEC. Second, it paints an accurate picture of the life of overpaid consultants kicked around by local executives. Third, it portrays the gap between the “official” and the “actual” lives of Saudis, even then, where a publicly austere façade masks a secret life of private parties laced with sex and drugs and drum and bass. And fourth, it tells a very good joke about a camel.
Another 230km north of KAEC, past unexpected grassy fields of grazing camels and even sheep that are a common feature of this coastline, is Yanbu, the second largest city on the Saudi Red Sea after Jeddah. It is not pretty – there are three oil refineries and a lot of manufacturing facilities – but there has been a settlement here for 2,500 years as it stood on the trade routes north, and these days it is a good base to explore the region. This is despite the improbable reality that the best two hotels seem to be the Holiday Inn and the Novotel.
The small centre of the city is the atmospheric Al Sur Historical District, which faces Marina Number 4, overlooked by an iconic water tower. There is a cluster of tumbledown buildings, a mini-me of those in Al Balad in Jeddah, most of which are under renovation. One of these was used by Lawrence Of Arabia. When the Ottomans sided with Germany in World War One, British intelligence officer Thomas Edward Lawrence, originally based in Cairo, was sent here to help the locals to overthrow their Turkish rulers. This begat the Great Arab Revolt and after a decisive battle at Yanbu in 1916, this city became the supplies and operations headquarters for all the forces fighting the Turks. Lawrence was not here long, though the Ministry of Tourism has made great play of his residence and this property has already been restored; you can visit it on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings.
Near here is a little Night Market, which sells tourist souvenirs, though it is not clear who buys them as it is evident that pitifully few visitors ever come to Yanbu. Also on the waterfront is a large square lined on the side facing the ocean with seafood restaurants and coffee shops with outdoor lounge seating. The most authentic is a couple of hundred metres inland, Yanbu Al Balad Fish Restaurant. You choose from the counter, and they will cook it however you like. The premium dish across this region is the Red Sea nagel, a spicy flash-fried coral trout, often served with sayadieh, a rice with onions and spices.
The main reason for coming to Yanbu, though, is the fact that it offers access to what are the best dive sites that have so far been mapped in the whole of Saudi Arabia. A list of all the country’s most notable spots are included in Scuba Travel; I have dived almost all of them and the finest by far are here.
Diving in these virgin waters is a brand new sport and in total I have come across not many more than about a dozen dive shops in this country that actually return your calls. Of the half dozen centres advertised in Yanbu, I have found only two operational: Diving Bubbles (+966 056 081 0339), who I have used, and Dolphin Diver (+966 054 642 0600). Both run scheduled trips in warm water all year round, but only on Fridays and Saturdays, so on other days you need to book a private charter. That is expensive but well worth it for the freedom of charging out to sea on a boat with a local captain blaring the latest international dance hits and a local dive guide serving homemade snacks during the surface intervals. Moreover, there are two genuinely world class dive sites.
It is half an hour to the wreck of the SS Iona, a British warship thought to have been sunk by a German U-boat in 1915. Discovered in 1980, it lies upright at a steep angle on the reef and in these clear waters with excellent visibility it is possible to get a good view of its 75m length smothered in pretty coral. It is easy to penetrate the long thin iron hull for a swim-through lit by daggers of sunlight streaming through the portholes; entry is through the stern at 40m and exit on the bridge at 18m.
It is forty-five minutes from Yanbu to Seven Sisters Reef, a series of breath-taking wall dives, where the current whips you past masses of healthy and colourful coral in a soup of small fish. There is also a good chance to see white tip sharks and even hammerheads, especially in the spring.
It is well known that authoritarian states are often littered with failed grand schemes, such as KAEC, which die with their progenitor. However, the six giga-projects under MBS’s Vision 2030 seem to have rather more power behind them. One of them is the Red Sea Project, which is the plan to develop 28,000km² of land and construct an archipelago of ninety artificial islands along a 70km stretch of coast north of Yanbu between the towns of Umluj and Hanak. The aim is to build a series of beach resorts, dive facilities, yacht marinas and other tourist infrastructure, including a new international airport to service them all. Just north of Hanak, the Amaala ultra-luxury resort, which intends to have 3,000 exclusive bedrooms spread over 4,000km2, has the status of its own giga-project. Time will tell if they all work out.
Umluj is 150km up the coast from Yanbu. The plan here is to turn the town and a hundred islands just off land into a high-end beaches-and-diving paradise (dugong, relatives of manatees, are especially plentiful here, though diving these waters will be banned for some years yet while the construction takes place). All this is already aggressively and improbably marketed as the Maldives of Saudi Arabia. However, at the moment all that is here is a rather grotty beachfront along King Abdullah Road, which is covered with posters of digitally generated images of what the future might look like, and the low rent Waves Hotel.
To be fair, there is already a swanky Ritz-Carlton and a fancy St Regis, each on their own private islands at Ummhat, as well as inland the Desert Rock Resort and Southern Dunes, the first Six Senses in the country. That is a stunning 25km drive off the Route 55 coast road, through vast sand dunes and over the rugged rocks of the northern Hejaz mountains, to reach Norman Foster’s creation. It is outrageously expensive by any measure, but it is also absolutely fabulous (notwithstanding the oppressively over-attentive service levels). We went only a couple of weeks after it opened, when the first guest had been King Salmon and his inner circle. Staff told us two interesting things: first, that no men were allowed to work on site while the Royal Family were staying; and second, that wine cellars have been built into the foundations ready for the big day.
The North
In the vast open space of northern Saudi Arabia, there are presently only two major draws for visitors. One, in and around the city of AlUla, has rapidly developed into the country’s emblematic destination for luxurious adventure. The other, all over Ha’il Province, is extremely isolated and requires a will to scramble through the desert to explore. There is also the promise of a third, the brand-new city of NEOM, though that is some way off at best.
AlUla
The Saudis, who never knowingly undersell anything, are in hyperbolic full cry about AlUla. Before MBS began opening the country, these ruins of important pre-Islamic civilizations, set among a stunning natural topography of empty desert and sandstone rock formations, were haram and off-limits. Yet this collection of sights is now branded as “the world’s masterpiece”, and with an awesome marketing effort it aims to become one of the premier historical attractions on the planet.
It is clear as the plane comes into land that this is an extraordinary landscape, of yellow rivers of sand flowing between jagged brown rocks of the Hejaz Mountain range. Staring down, it is hard to imagine that this whole area was under the sea in the age of the dinosaurs, and harder still to spot any of the two hundred Arabian leopards apparently remaining in the wild here today.
There is a lot to visit and much of it is spread out; the airport is in the south of AlUla Valley, 30km from the old town of AlUla halfway up, another 30km from the main sites at Hegra in the north. So, I recommend hiring a car. Even though the local road signs are in Arabic only, it is not hard to find your way about. At the airport arrivals hall there are desks for Budget and Lumi.
The old town of AlUla, founded in the narrowest part of the valley in the sixth century BC and with a current population of just 5,000, was on the ancient trade route that linked India and southern Arabia to the Levant and the Mediterranean. The steep walls of the Hejaz plunge right into the heart of town, where mudbrick dwellings, hidden passages, and a hilltop castle with views all around, have all been made spick-and-span for the anticipated tourist boom. The dusty main boulevard has gorgeous boutiques (including a Harvey Nicholls) and cafes (the pick of which for location, atmosphere and cuisine are national favourites Al Nakheel and Suhail). That runs into a renovated artistic quarter, full of colourfully patterned tarmac and secluded outdoor galleries.
An oasis stretches for almost 10km along the valley, in which grow not just date palms but also farmed orange and lemon trees, mangoes and pomegranates, figs and okra. There is a shaded pathway that meanders through it.
The reason this area is set for prominence on the global tourist trail is simple: Hegra (known to Muslims as Al Hijr and to archaeologists as Madā ͐ in Ṣāliḥ). Some 2,000 years ago the Nabateans travelled more than 500km from their home in the city of Petra in Jordan to carve a sister settlement near the oasis in these dramatic sandstone cliff faces at the head of the AlUla Valley. Dating from the first century BC to the first century AD, when the Nabateans were annexed into the Roman Empire, are 111 monumental tombs, of which 94 have decorated facades at their entrances. Discovered only 150 years ago and lost to the desert until professional archaeological excavations finally began in the twenty-first century, it is these tombs that earned KSA its first UNESCO World Heritage Site, as recently as 2008.
Hegra is not Petra, by scale or by detail, but when the Saudis become more confident and experienced in attracting visitors they will understand that it can be marketed as important and impressive in its own right, regardless of comparisons with its more famous cousin.
To explore Hegra, you need to book a half-day tour that can be undertaken by coach or better still by vintage-looking Land Rover. You meet your vehicle at the South Entrance Point, and you set off on a short circuit with four stops.
First up is Jabal Al Ahmar, or Red Mountain, which has a number of small square holes carved as doorways in the rock face. This is followed by Qasr Al Farid, the Tomb of Lihyan, the son of Kuza. Although no body has in fact ever been found here, this Unique Palace is the most iconic site because it is the grandest tomb, with four columns instead of the usual two carved into its own separate outcrop.
Next is Jabal Al Banat, which has the only tomb that visitors are permitted to enter. Finally, at Al Diwan and Jabal Ithlib, there is a slight crack between two tall cliffs that allows sunlight to stream into a narrow passageway leading to a cave used for social and official gatherings.
As if that were not enough, the area north of AlUla was also the capital of another civilization, which flourished five hundred years before the arrival of the Nabateans: the ancient Kingdom of Dadan. These ruins were discovered as recently as 2004 and are still being exhumed. Following Hegra, this two-hour tour can feel a bit after-the-Lord-Mayor’s-Show, but it is part of the AlUla experience. You meet your vehicle at Winter Park, and there are only three sites.
At the back of the visitors’ centre is the most feted of the hundreds of Dadan tombs, hallowed because of what are thought to be a pair of lions carved above the entrance portal, likely put there to protect the inhabitant. They are high in the mountain and discernible only through binoculars.
Excavations of the remnants of the city of Dadan, situated before a particularly stunning vista of date palms and sandstone mountains, have revealed a large temple at its centre, dedicated to their chief god, Dhu Ghaybah. The most significant feature though is a large basin, used to hold water and known locally as Mahlab al Naqah, sculpted from a single block of sandstone.
There are thousands of inscriptions across AlUla, though nowhere are they so prevalent as at Jabal Ikmah, marketed as the Outdoor Library. These walls, in a narrow gorge, reveal pictures and words, the earliest dating from the tenth century BC, in dozens of languages including Aramaic, Thamudic, Dadanitic, Minaean, Nabatean, Greek, Latin and Arabic. This is the graffiti of travellers, traders and pilgrims, leaving their historical record down the ages at this crossroads of continents.
Even though you can feel that tourism – its infrastructure and its service quality – is still immature here, the Saudis are putting every effort into making this a world class site, 700km north of Jeddah, 1,000km west of Riyadh, and in the middle of the desert. Certainly, there are fabulous places to stay, including Banyan Tree, Habitas and Shaden. Top tier international restaurants are opening, including a Maraya Social By Jason Atherton and a Somewhere as well as an occasional pop-up Annabel’s, However, for authentic local cuisine do not overlook the simple little AlUla Heritage Restaurants & Kitchens with traditional floor seating, goat meat and the best kunafa dessert going.
AlUla is forever hosting global superstars – pop concerts, fashion shows and art exhibitions – to attract more attention. To me, the single biggest wow in the whole AlUla Valley is Maraya, the arts centre and concert hall that is the focus of all this effort. The architectural conception is outrageous, and it is easy to stand and stare for ages and from every angle at the largest mirrored building in the world as it reflects the glories of the surrounding sand and rock.
While we were in AlUla in the spring of 2023, Maraya was showing a ground-breaking exhibition of work by Andy Warhol called Fame. Meanwhile, the annual Hot Air Balloon Festival was getting going and the AlUla Camel Cup was run. This is the richest camel race of all-time, with a purse of almost €2m; by comparison, the Cheltenham Gold Cup, held on the same day, paid out less than €400,000. The track is down near the airport.
Hegra may not be Petra, but it is easy to spend a fun few days in AlUla, which provides a spectacular backdrop of rocks, canyons and wadis to all this activity. Scarred by erosion, leaving beautiful strata and tafoni, the array of oddly shaped rocks is akin to Monument Valley in Utah.
The most renowned is Jabal Al Fil, Elephant Rock. It is open from 4pm to midnight, during which time cool Ibiza beats echo beautifully around the site, which is lit in warm browns as it gets dark. You can slump on beanbags or banquettes in circular pods dug into the sand out of the wind. There is absolutely no religious element to this at all, yet I found this spot to be by far the most spiritual place in the entire country.
A great place to end a trip here is at the Harrat Viewpoint, up in the mountains above the old town. Just beyond the Okto Greek restaurant and its viewing lounge, you can look all the way across the valley from the airport in the south to Hegra in the north. It really is quite a place, and it is easy to see why it has got the Saudi Tourism Authority salivating.
Ha’il
The city of Ha’il is more than 400km east of AlUla and over 600km north-west of Riyadh, so it is best reached by plane. Saudia has daily direct flights from Riyadh and Jeddah, and Flynas from Riyadh. To get about Ha’il region you need to hire a car, which is easily sorted at the string of half-a-dozen rental booths in the arrivals hall.
The only place you are likely to stay claims to be five-star, but is in fact a classic provincial monster, the Millennium. The best place for a relaxing evening is the spectacular Hatem View restaurant and café at the top of Jabal Samra (there is a small charge to go up). Open from 5pm to 8am every night, it has hundreds of seats raking down the hillside, overlooking the town squeezed into the valley between two lines of spikey-ridged mountains.
Ha’il was the capital of the Emirate of Jabal Shammar, which was ruled by the Rashids until their final defeat by bitter rivals the Saudis in 1902. From this period there are the remnants of two important buildings, close together in the middle of town: Barzan Castle, the former home of the Rashid dynasty that was spitefully destroyed by King Abdulaziz after his victory, leaving only two sad towers and bits of wall; and their 200-year-old A’arif Fort, which is in mint condition on the only hill in town, giving great views over the oasis all around. Also notable is the nearby rectangle of Al Qishlah Castle, built in the 1930s as a barracks and arms depot, the largest mudbrick building in the world.
Many of the roundabouts in this region have massive sculptures in the middle, with oud burners and coffee dallahs particularly popular. That is because Ha’il is Saudi’s main manufacturing centre for both, and you can visit what is called the National Factory near the souq. In reality, this turns out to be rows and rows of little workshops side-by-side where labourers sit on the floor and bang away with hammers all day. You are welcome to watch your item being made before you buy it direct from the studio.
The souq itself is open every day from 2-8pm. There is a nest of pedestrianised streets, a big fruit and veg area, and an especially plentiful dates section.
The purpose in coming here is to access the prehistoric and immensely significant rock art that is spread across the Narfoud Desert, collectively a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Google Maps warns it is all “temporarily closed”, but it certainly is not. Official websites declare you need to arrange permits in advance, but you definitely do not. There are two main sites.
The closest is more or less in the town of Jubbah, 120km north-west of Ha’il. You leave Ha’il going north on Route 70, then hop onto Routes 8650 and 65 before twisting through the narrow streets of Jubbah to reach the foothills of Jabel Umm Sinman on the edge of the oasis. There is an 8km-long fence around the site, with eleven gates that are open from 9am to 5pm in the winter. As it often rains here then, we chanced the summer, when they are always locked. We simply rang the number on the door – +966 055 701 3435 – and ten minutes later the custodian, Mamdouh Al Fadhel, arrived, let us in, and showed us around.
As far back as 10,000 years, a long-gone lake here was a base for Thamud people and a stopover for those crossing the desert, residents and travellers who left their mark on the sandstone in the form of carved pictures. These include animals, with lions and ostriches as well as cattle and camels. The most emblematic is a Picassoesque depiction of a horse-drawn chariot.
I could find no reports online from any tourists who have ever been to the other site, and almost everyone we asked told us it was too difficult to arrange. Eventually, we located an expert guide, the passionate archaeologist Abdul Majeed, on +966 054 440 7798. He took us south-west to the middle of the desert, past pretty sand dunes and rocky outcrops, in his 4×4.
You leave Ha’il heading south on Route 70, then jump onto Routes 389 and 7989 before turning right onto the 8510 then left onto the 7898. About 260km and three hours later you arrive at the village of Shuwaymis (confusingly spelled Shwimes on Google Maps), half-way to Medina. From here it is another 50km to the site, which takes a while because after two-thirds of the way there is a sign by the smooth tarmac accurately declaring “roadway end”, from where it is a blind drive across the sand.
Again, there is a fence with an office by the main gate. This time our guide had rung ahead so the custodian was waiting for us. Between the low-lying hilltops of Jabal al Manjor and Jabal Raat is a 500m-wide valley that was once supplied by ancient wadis, and is today roamed by easily-spotted desert foxes and wolves. Here there are important and outstanding petroglyphs recording the transition from hunting to herding, as well as later camel trains, reflecting major economic and cultural changes over the past ten millennia. There are hundreds if not thousands of carvings on Jabal Raat, including women dancing and a man with a gigantic erection, while the most prominent on Jabal Al Manjor are a trio of massive camels.
NEOM
Undoubtedly the most hyped of all the half-dozen Vision 2030 giga-projects is NEOM (apparently a portmanteau of “new” in Greek and “future” in Arabic). Plans have been drawn on 12,500 km2 of northern desert, where semi-nomadic Bedouin inhabitants have been cleared to make way, and budgets have been estimated at US$500bn.
However, do not come looking for it just yet. Despite the computer-generated images of it on billboards all over the Middle East and beyond that give the impression of hyper-modern developments, there is currently nothing there but the early stages of a building site. Moreover, for the past year the media has been full of stories that its ambition is to be scaled back, or at least slowed down.
NEOM
If it ever does become reality, NEOM is intended to be based around four dizzyingly ambitious ideas.
- The Line is planned to be a megacity of 9m people living contiguously above a 170km-long transit system capable of moving people from one end to the other in under 20 minutes.
- Oxagon is slated to be a 7km-wide industrial complex floating on the Red Sea that in its northern half will host a completely automated port and its southern will produce green hydrogen and ammonia.
- Trojena is intended to become a mountain tourism destination that will host the 2029 Asian Winter Games. Its six districts have been named in the cringy way of these things: Gateway, Discover, Valley, Explore, Relax and Fun.
- Sindalah is hoped to develop into a high-end island destination to supplant the French Riviera for Saudis and Europeans alike. An uninhabited island just off the coast would host animatronic Jurassic Park-style attractions featuring full-size robotic dinosaurs.
On top of all that there would also be Shusha Island, a luxury destination (obviously) containing the world’s largest coral garden for divers, plus a 100km-long strip of coast on the Gulf of Aqaba replete with boutique hotels and a brand-new airport to service it all.
Dammam & The East
Easy to access by car over the bridge from Bahrain, or through the world’s largest airport by land area, the primary attractions for visitors to the oil heartlands of the eastern province are along the Corniche in Dammam, which is also the jumping off point for short drives through the desert to reach the planet’s biggest oasis at Al Hasa.
Dammam
The Dammam metropolis of more than 4m people, Saudi Arabia’s third, final and newest major urban area, 400km from Riyadh, in fact comprises three cities: Dammam itself in the north, Dhahran in the south, and Al Khobar spread along the coast. It is only an hour’s drive on the King Fahd Bridge from Bahrain, which is where streams of Saudis retreat on Thursday evenings for weekends of illicit fun and games.
The local tribal fishing and pearling hamlet was transformed in 1938 when Aramco struck oil at Well Number 7, now designated Prosperity Well, which proved Saudi Arabia possessed an oversupply of hydrocarbons. Since further nearby discoveries in the 1940s and 1950s, this region has accounted for 25% of the earth’s proven oil reserves. No wonder that Saudi Aramco, one of the world’s richest companies (third by market cap and seventh by revenue), is headquartered here; unsurprisingly, there are police checkpoints as soon as you come anywhere near it.
There is little to detain visitors in the city of Dammam itself, and the main appeal in Dhahran, close enough to Saudi Aramco HQ to require checkpoint clearance, is the King Abdulaziz Centre of World Culture, known as Ithra. Two-thirds of this striking building are in fact underground, and it houses all manner of cultural activities, many of which were banned before it opened in 2018. There is a touch of North Korea about the enthusiasm with which you are directed to enjoy their library and their high-tech immersion room, but it is also understandable that they are so proud of their creation. Their terrific virtual reality set-up offers the best chance most people are likely to get of walking with thousands of pilgrims around the Kaaba of the Masjid al Haram in Mecca.
For the few tourists who do come this way, the place to go is Al Khobar, which has an attractive 16km Corniche with a similar seaside vibe to Jeddah, where landscaped gardens, duck ponds and sculpted walkways allow locals to promenade, picnic, exercise at the outdoor gyms and the jogging tracks, romp in the children’s playgrounds, and sit in the outdoor cafes. This is one of the best places to see the wonderful cultural mash-up of women in burqas zipping about on electric scooters.
At the north end, on an island off the square with the huge national flag and the little white mosque, is the iconic Water Tower, which lights up pink at night. There is an international restaurant on top. Inland from here, beyond the huge villas, is the Movenpick, tucked inside which is Maharaja, with grand high ceilings, marble all around, and a claim to be the best Indian restaurant in a country that has a massive population of Indian workers.
At the south end, near the Sofitel, is Ajdan Walk, a modern development of falafel joints, burger bars, cheesecake outlets and coffee shops. Also here is the Matal Eatery Complex, a collection of upper-scale restaurants, the pick of which is the Arabian Peninsula favourite, Café Bateel, with a lovely terrace overlooking the ocean.
The best places to stay around here are the Grand Hyatt on Custodian Of The Two Holy Mosques Road, the Kempinski on King Saud bin Abdulaziz Road, and the renovated Meridien on the waterfront.
Three-quarters of an hour south of Al Khobar, past the city of Dhahran, is Half-Moon Bay, a 40km-long curve of sand that is probably the best in the country right now before the elite beaches at Amaala and the Red Sea Project are fully up and running. Mostly frequented by Aramco workers at weekends, there are several big resorts that echo the modesty and repression of 1950s America, replete with Punch-and-Judy shows and slap-stick clowns: on the way down, facing the open sea, is another Movenpick, and, near the centre of the curve of the big bay shaped like a letter C dug into the mainland, are the Palm Beach, the Dana and the Radisson Blu.
Al Hasa & Al Hofuf
There are surprisingly inexpensive but comfortable trains that are an easy way to skim through the desert on the four hours it takes from Dammam to Riyadh. This dropdown box on the Saudi Arabia Railways website gives an amusing insight into their expectations.
However, the best way to access properly the remoter parts of the east is to hire a car or a driver to take the lovely route from Dammam to Al Hasa and then on to Riyadh. Al Hasa is a UNESCO World Heritage Site of 2.5 million palm trees in 85km2 of land irrigated by 280 artesian springs from a huge underground aquifer, the largest oasis on earth. Not unrelated, it is also one of the biggest producers of dates in the world.
Al Hofuf, 60km inland, is its main town. Inhabited since the Neolithic period, it is full of wells and canals as well as historic buildings, and it is the setting for one of the most popular fables in the Arab world, the burial of love story stars Laila and Majnoon. It is also one of the few places in Saudi Arabia where you can buy locally grown fruit and veg.
At its centre is the Al Koot historic district, where you will find Qasr Ibrahim, a fifteenth century white palace and mosque complex rising above high brown walls. Nearby is the immaculately restored Al Mulla House, built in 1788, where King Abdulaziz peacefully subsumed Al Hasa into Saudi Arabia in 1913.
Just five minutes by foot on King Abdulaziz Street is Al Qaisariah Souq, a warren of narrow alleys behind a magnificent Ottoman-style gate and façade.
On the outskirts of Al Hofuf is Jebel Al Qarah, a limestone massif that overlooks the endless fields of palms. A short track has been beaten between impressive limestone pillars that leads to a narrow cave, which has recently become an attraction for locals. A little further out still is Jawatha Park, with walkways around a lake and the ruins of the earliest known mosque built in Eastern Arabia.
Ghawar
Ghawar, at 30km by 280km by far the largest conventional oil field in the world, accounts for roughly a third of the cumulative oil production of a country that is believed to have at least 250 billion barrels remaining. At its current rate of extracting about 10 million barrels a day, its reserves would last for another 70 years. Driving around here you see gas flares all over the desert.
The South
Probably because it is so little visited by foreigners (I have never seen another male not wearing a thobe on the plane going south from Riyadh) and yet so keen to live the new open life (you will occasionally come across buildings with segregated entrances, with one door marked “men” and another “family”, used until 2017) that south Saudi is excessively hospitable. Although virtually nobody speaks English, strangers will often ask you to come to their homes for a meal.
In addition to a warm welcome, you can expect a relaxed environment: wearing shorts here is more than acceptable, whether on the beaches, in the desert, or at the heritage sites around the three centres of Abha, Jazan and Najran.
Rub Al Khali
Rub Al Khali, known as the Empty Quarter, is the vast stretch of deserted desert that consumes most of the southern third of the Arabian Peninsula. Covering 650,000km2, its reach is 1,000km long and 500km wide. Interspersed with gravel and gypsum plains, the sand here tends to be reddish in colour thanks to the presence of feldspar, and the dunes are swept as high as 250m. Undocumented by foreign explorers until the 1930s, several tribes still live here today, the largest of which is the Al Murrah, benefiting from the few roads that link the many oil fields and the scarce water sources. A drive through here is simply spectacular.
On the west edge of the Empty Quarter is ‘Uruq Bani Ma’arid, a protected wildlife reserve. This has become a UNESCO World Heritage Site because it is where the Arabian oryx, which has become extinct in the wild, is being reintroduced from captive breeding centres. Other residents include short-toed snake eagles and lappet-faced vultures as well as desert hedgehogs and desert monitors, Cheeseman’s gerbils, lesser Egyptian jerboas, cape hares, sand cats and Rüppell’s foxes.
Also here is another UNESCO World Heritage Site, Al Faw in Wado Al Dawasir. At a strategic location on ancient trade routes between the Empty Quarter and the Tuwaiq mountains, settlements here date from prehistoric times. In the fourth century AD, Qaryat Al Faw emerged as the capital of the Kinda Kingdom, the first attempt to unify the nomadic tribes of central Arabia, until after a hundred years of harmony it collapsed in bloody feuds and the city was abandoned. A vast area of 50 km² is now a paradise for archaeologists.
‘Uruq Bani Ma’arid and Al Faw are about 80km apart, and both are roughly 400km north-east of Najran.
Abha & Asir
In contrast to Rub Al Khali, the region of Asir, in the south-west, is nothing like most people’s expectations of Saudi Arabia. With a tropical climate, comparatively temperate in the summer (with days around 25°C and evenings a chilly 20°C), plus rain showers all year round, this is a popular destination for Saudis swapping the firebox in June, July and August for heritage, culture and art. For this is the premier cultural province of the country and so significant is it for MBS that development of the entire region has been designated one of the giga-projects under Vision 2030; hence, there is a lot of visible development going on.
The regional capital is Abha, probably my favourite city in the whole country, set in a bowl 2,200m above sea level between the big hills but with a compact centre where you will rapidly become familiar with King Khalid Road as it links most of the places you want to go.
The little airport is 20km to the east, and there are loads of car rental firms just outside the arrivals hall. Most will allow you to drop off at Jazan or Najran airports, making this triangle an ideal road trip.
Hiring a car is a must to get around these parts but be aware that the standard of driving here – across Saudi in general but around the south in particular – is atrocious, as bad as anywhere I have ever been. This is frequently attributed to a lack of parental discipline plus an absence of law enforcement until recently, combined with the fatalism of Islamic belief, plus of course the basic fact that men do not have to take a driving test (though women do). Whatever the reason, you need to take more care than usual because these drivers rarely indicate as they drift between lanes while texting at top speed.
On the way into the city are lots of cafes and restaurants, including two of the best places for dinner: Al Tall (Lebanese) and Tonir (Armenian).
There is a big hole in the town centre where a huge flag stands in vast but empty Al Baha Plaza, surrounded by King Khalid Road. There is a terrific overlook of it from the 360° terrace of the restaurant at the top of the Blue Inn. Also in the Plaza is the grand municipal office and Shada Palace, built in 1927 for the then Saudi governor but now a regional cultural museum.
Just north of here, atop a small hill, is Shamsan Castle, dating from the Ottoman Empire, which had various degrees of control over these lands between 1517 and 1918.
Within Saudi, this region is renowned as the home of Al Qatt Al Asiri; this is a fine art form expressed in designs of geometric patterns and bright colours, which were originally painted as frescos by women to brighten the entrance to their homes. You will see plenty of it touching up public spaces across the region and beyond but a particularly good spot for it not far from Al Baha Plaza is Al Muftaha bohemian arts village (it usually opens around 5pm every day). With a heritage stretching back 260 years, this little community has been overhauled as part of the country’s cultural renaissance and it is a lovely place to meander around art galleries, boutique stores and coffee shops amid the murals on the ancient buildings.
Close to Al Muftaha, near the totem pole, is Arts Street, a short run of sculpted gardens, snack bars and children’s play areas. Also here is the Tuesday Market, which is in fact open seven days a week and is a great place for cheap Al Qatt Al Asiri painted souvenirs.
An iconic landmark in the middle of the city is Jabal Thera, popularly known as Green Mountain because of the colour it is lit at night. It has been under reconstruction for a while, but apparently at the top will be a couple of hotels and a trio of restaurants. There is a road up, but the fun ride is by cable car (open 1pm to 7pm) that starts near the Abha Palace Hotel and goes via High City.
High City is much bigger than it looks from King Abdulaziz Ring Road; a collection of places to shop as well as eat, drink and smoke shisha, some include terraces with panoramas facing Green Mountain. It is near Abu Kheyal Park, popular for picnicking among the jacaranda trees, especially when they turn purple in the autumn. This Park is also host of the finest restaurants in the area: the Jorry Elite ensemble comprises Senso (Italian), Aala Bali (Lebanese) and La Scene (burgers and other international foodstuffs). Both High City and Abu Kheyal offer fine views of the whole Abha bowl.
Five minutes from here but facing away from the city towards the twisting road south to Jazan is the Dhabab Walkway, a paved boardwalk with another panorama. Just here is Joy Venue, a series of coffee shops with sofas on their terraces.
In the west of the city is the Dam and the Lake. There is a great view of them from the excellent restaurant, coffee house and shisha rooftop of Kashouna. Along from here is the Abha Palace Hotel, one of the most characterful hotels in Saudi Arabia and by far the best place to stay in Abha. On the fifth floor is an international buffet (a huge spread, though I’ve stayed here three times and am yet to see another diner). On the ground floor is a lovely atrium for a Saudi coffee as well as one of the best shops in town for high-end Al Qatt Al Asiri paintings and carpets.
Abha is the perfect base to explore the Al Soudah National Park to the north-west, preferably in the summer when the air is cool and the land is green. These rugged mountains are part of the same Hejaz Range as Taif 600km to the north and are full of hiking trails and other attractions.
Leaving Abha on Route 214, after 15km there is a left turn to the village of Al Azizah; this is signposted to the Abu Sarrah Historical Palaces. These were the palatial homes of wealthy merchants in the nineteenth century, and today in their gardens are two lovely outdoor cafes that make for an atmospheric stop.
Back on Route 214 it is another 20km along the ridge of the mountains, making a steady climb to the top of Jabal Sawda, which at 3,133m is the highest peak in the country. This area is under development so its services meet the standards required in the new Saudi Arabia, but near the colourful market there are two celebrated features. One is the Al Soudah Bridge, a thirty-year-old wooden structure that leads to a little hike. The other is the Al Soudah cable car, which runs down the cliff face. There are troops of baboons all along the road, enjoying the spectacular panoramas of the National Park below. Dates and honey are sold from pick-up trucks at the roadside and on Fridays locals pepper the way with picnics by their vehicles.
Not long after here is a left turn off Route 214 onto Route 2442. This is the dizzyingly steep and sharp zigzag road that you can see from above, which leads through actual forests with actual trees to the pretty heritage village of Rijal Alma, which dates back more than 400 years. It is only 30km but with frequent photo stops it took us well over an hour to reach Rijal Alma, built into the mountain slopes at 1,800m. The village is striking because the brown stone houses are piled on top of each other up the hillsides, and their window frames are all painted in the bright colours associated with Asir. It is also beautifully presented, with my favourite market in the country, selling anything you care to name painted in the Asiri style, along with a gorgeous coffee shop. To get back to Abha, you need to retrace your steps, which is no hardship at all.
There are several other heritage villages in the region but the other unmissable one is Al Habala. From Abha, a straight road 50km south-east leads to this “hanging village”, a series of sandstone houses perched precariously on a steep cliff overlooking a dramatic barren valley. Al Habala was famed locally for its inhabitants of “flower men” (Qahtan tribes who wore dried herbs in their hair) and was reached only by rope ladder (habala = rope). They were forcibly evacuated in the 1990s and these days there is a cable-car for visitors to get up close and personal.
Jazan & Farasan Islands
Jazan is the small region in the far south-west of the country in the pocket that abuts the Red Sea and the Yemen border, and it is one of the hottest places on earth. Its eponymous capital, confusingly spelled Gizan on airline booking websites, is on the coast, a two-and-a-half-hour drive down the rocky mountains from Abha, when every kilometre increases the temperature. Do not come in the summer, when it is unbearably hot; in the winter it is gorgeous, hovering around 30°C, when the figs, mangos, papayas and other tropical fruits abound.
There is not that much in town for visitors apart from Turks Castle, another dating from the Ottoman Empire, up a small hill with a good view of the coast. The sleeping options are poor too, limited to the Grand Millennium on its own north of town, or the Novotel by the port. However, Jazan does have the best fish market I have found in the entire Arabian Peninsula. You buy them here and take them over the road to Jumberico Restaurant to get them cooked in whatever style you choose.
The main reason for coming to Jazan is to jump over to the unspoiled Farasan Islands, about 50km off the coast. There are eighty-four in total, though only three are inhabited; the rest are in a protected marine reserve. The largest, Farasan Island itself, is home to 12,000 people, many of whom commute daily to Jazan.
The logistics of getting to the Farasans can feel daunting as the small number of visitors they are expecting are neither foreign nor English-speaking. Making it across was not easy and once we had the series of dominoes falling in the right order and finally got here it felt like we had beaten the system and conquered another frontier of tourism. So I hope the details below will make it a lot smoother for you.
There are daily car-ferries at 7.30am and 3.30pm that take roughly an hour. You can try booking online through the Transport General Authority, though we have never been able to navigate their system as it appears you require Saudi ID; so you are likely to end up queueing at their ticket office on King Fahd Road, which is a vortex of helplessness. In any case, a better option that supports the local community is to take a speedboat; they go first thing in the morning from the tatty and sparse Tourist Edge Marina.
You can book a private trip in advance for about SAR500 one-way; if you are in a hurry you need Captain Abdulrahman on +966 053 737 5507; but if you want an unforgettable experience with a character who will take you around every little island, stop at any isolated sandy beach you fancy, then pull up at random passing trawlers and somehow persuade them to give you the choicest of their catch, then the man for you is Captain Suliman on +966 050 457 9647. Otherwise, you can take your chances and turn up hoping to go by taxi boat for SAR50 if there is a spare seat, which it appears from the number of captains touting them that there usually are. It is the same deal coming back.
Whichever way you go, as for all boat trips in Saudi Arabia, you will need your captain to register your passport and immigration numbers online in advance with the Zawil border guard authorities. The key point here is you can only be registered for one permit at a time, so if you are going on a sequence of boat rides, as you are likely to be in the Farasans, then you must register the first one first and not register the next one until that is completed and cancelled, etcetera.
All these boats dock on the east side of Farasan Island. Obviously, the main advantage of the ferry is you could have your own car with you; otherwise, you will need to accost a cab driver for the time of your stay. Somehow, we found Mr Saleem, on +966 055 028 2971, who also doubled as an excellent tour guide.
There is only one hotel on the island; it is on the west coast a ten-minute drive across from the main dock, and that too turned out to be hard to book. Online it is still referred to as the Farasan Coral Resort, even though that closed down some time back; people locally now refer to it as the Furasan Park Hotel, although the sign at the front announces it as the Hadayiq Fursan Hotel. Whatever. You can call them on +966 017 316 0000 or Whatsapp them on +966 053 085 0094. Given the circumstances it is fine, despite the night-time midges, with a decent little beach where you can lie in swimwear on loungers facing the sunset.
We spent a half day with Mr Saleem, zipping around a circuit of places of interest on Farasan Island. Al Qassar heritage village is an abandoned set of single-story stone buildings without rooves that were once a mosque, a farm and the homes and shops of pearling traders, when that industry thrived here in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The best example of a wealthy merchants’ house is in the currently inhabited village nearby, where a pair of properties belonging to Al Rifai, built in 1922, are adorned all over with calligraphic decorations of Qur’anic verses and intricate geometric plaster stuccos, displaying his affluence and status. The town, which also has a working ATM and a decent eatery, the Beach Sea Restaurant, is overlooked by an unusual Ottoman fortress.
On the south coast is Ras Al Qarn, a long series of rugged and untouched beaches with picturesque rock formations. On the north coast is Hesais, a promenade of elegant lampposts and children’s play areas, not far from the short bridge linking Farasan and Sajid islands.
A major appeal of the Farasans is Qandal Forest, a series of narrow canals that weave around a jungle of mangrove trees; you will see drone shots of it on billboards all over. The water is deep blue and could be the Caribbean or the South Pacific. It is best to go at high tide, and you can hustle a little motorboat from the dock near the ferry terminal. This is an important breeding ground for several rare bird species. In addition to the charismatic pelicans that zoom around, there are Crab Plovers, Ospreys, Red-Billed Tropics, Saunders Little Terns, Sooty Falcons and White-Eyed Gulls.
The other main reason for coming here is it is the other great centre in Saudi Arabia for scuba diving. However, regardless of the enticing adverts on Visit Saudi, there are in fact no dive shops on the Farasan Islands themselves; and contrary to the advice of associates in Riyadh at the most senior levels of the Ministry of Tourism, nor is it easy to find a shop in Jazan to sort a dive in the Farasans. We finally found one through our contacts in Yanbu: Jazan Dive Centre (Mr Faoud can be Whatsapped on +966 050 066 0852).
We had read about the Jazan kunnah fishing season, which every summer pulls out one-third of the entire annual catch of the Red Sea, apparently with a focus on the iconic parrotfish, and we spotted a number of little fishing boats as well as trawlers, so frankly our hopes were not high. However, it turned out there are plentiful rays and turtles on the pretty coral, an abundance of shoaling barracuda, and easy-to-find silky sharks sleeping in pairs under rocky outcrops.
Back on the mainland, there is one more important stop-off in Jazan. Heading east from the city for 100km on the road to Najran are the agricultural terraces of Al Dayer Bani Malik, home to coffee fields that blossom with sweet smelling white flowers for three or four days in late March ahead of the rainy season. The health of the flowers gives farmers an idea of the likely strength of the harvest six months later. In this region, there are more than 700 coffee farmers sharing a total of 150,000 bushes.
Najran & Hima
It is three-and-a-half hours of direct driving from Abha or five hours from Jazan to the new town of Najran, 1,000km from Riyadh. This is a small place with big dreams, reflected in the large-scale grid system already laid out way beyond its current borders, full of arrow straight roads and fancy strip malls. Najran is being built to serve the awakening interest in its surrounding heritage, but also as a showcase of modern might to neighbouring Yemen, which is just 10km away.
As we approach Najran there are more and more security checkpoints and military bases as well as more and more public symbols of nationalist pride (enormous green national flags and gigantic national emblems of palm-tree-over-crossed-swords are cut into mountains, and Vision 2030 monoliths and giant gun monuments are set in the middle of roundabouts). At every major junction in town, parked police and security cars sit with lights flashing. The reputedly picturesque Najran Valley Dam south-west of town has been off-limits to visitors since Saudi Arabia launched a military intervention in the Yemeni Civil War in 2015, because of the sheer number of missiles fired over the border by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. That said, we found it totally safe.
The landmark building is Amarah Palace, originally built in 1943 for the ruling family. Its mud bricks have been renovated immaculately and it is the iconic example of the local traditional architectural style that looks like gingerbread castles topped with icing sugar.
Around it is the souq, which has an elaborate façade, the dates and home goods you find everywhere, as well as a feature I have seen nowhere else. This is near the abattoir, where you are welcome to witness a halal slaughter of goats and camels if you are so inclined. The skins of goats are kept whole but have taps added so they can be hung and used as bags to store and keep cool water and yoghurts; other goat skins are used for the belts that hold Wahabite Jambiya, the classic Saudi ceremonial curved daggers that are mostly made in the south.
Out west, past the Water Tower, is Al Aan Palace, originally built in 1688 though renovated many times. This is also in the local style and opens only Thursdays to Saturdays when a local volunteer will show you around and ply you with water, coffee and dates, all for free. From the top of it there are good views of Raum Castle, built in the hills in the 1930s by Yemenis, and the Yemen border at the top of the mountains not far away.
South of the invariably dry riverbed that cuts through Najran is the Al Ukhdud archaeological site, a major dig into the ancient walled city of Ragmat. Fenced off 200m by 230m, but opened briefly each day, amid the mounds of ruins and debris the foundations of a stone and mudbrick settlement that was occupied from 600 BC to 200 AD are being excavated. This was the last major stop for the ancient caravans bringing frankincense and myrrh from Yemen before they split, with some heading east to Al Hasa and others west to Jeddah. It was also the scene in the sixth century where the Jewish Warlord Dhu Nuwas set fire to as many as 20,000 Christians for refusing to convert to Judaism. Next to it is the distinctive regional museum.
For typical local food, chosen from the kitchen and eaten off trays on the floor in a private cubicle, Al Remal is a must; it is near the neon-lit Al Azzam shopping mall. Across town there are a bunch of nondescript four star hotels; we went for the Gloria Inn because their erudite and charming manager responded to our requests to book a local guide, essential for exploring the outdoor gallery of must-see ancient graffiti at Hima.
About 120km north of Najran, Bir Hima can be reached either by speeding up the main road in less than ninety minutes or better still by driving in a 4×4 across the granite mountains and then through the rocky desert. The best time to come is October to March to avoid the heat and the sandstorms, though we came in the summer and found all that added to the drama and the adventure.
For 9,000 years this was – and still is – a major water supply, sheltered from the elements: Bir (meaning “well”) Hima (meaning “protection”). From 7000 BC until 1000 BC, camel trains paused here and carved their thoughts and images into the rock. Discovered only in 1951, across the Hima Cultural Area, a recent UNESCO World Heritage Site, there are at least a hundred sets of Palaeolithic and Neolithic petroglyphs, including more than 6,000 illustrations of humans and animals as well as thousands of inscriptions in various scripts including Aramaic-Nabatean, Greek and Islamic, revealing the diversity of peoples passing through. Many of them have recently been enclosed behind chicken-wire fences for protection, but your guide will show you how to climb the rocks up and around them, making the whole thing feel even more exploratory.
There is no way my writing can do justice to the treasures of this country. But in conclusion I hope this article gives a flavour of what you may find, behind the headlines, if you are curious enough to come look. It has been my privilege to spend three years crawling all over it, at a moment of dramatic transformation, and before tourists or writers of guidebooks have been.