More than the World's Piggy Bank: Saudi Arabia, Emerging Tourism Hot Spot

When we traveled to Saudi Arabia in 2023, it was just opening its doors after beginning to issue tourist visas in September 2019 - right as COVID was about to shut the world down. Since our visit in the early days of an open Saudi, we still mainly hear about visits to the country in the context of business meetings or to attend a conference. Saudi is more than just a financial center. We recommend adding a few days next time you pass through for meetings or even making a whole trip out of Saudi.

When we first went to Saudi, we couldn't find a tourism book written for the country yet. The guide book is still being written as the country invents itself for the outside world. Its a nation at a true crossroads and it is changing at the speed of light.

Saudi is currently working on its Vision 2030 plan and still has a few years remaining to accomplish its lofty transformative goals. This fact is tangible all around as construction and consultants cover the tourism friendly districts working to create infrastructure around noteworthy cities and historical sites. Our itinerary is below, but the experiences in each destination that were interesting were not necessarily location dependent - this is more about seeing a moment in history for Saudi as the country opens up to the West and as the population meets the change with a combination of excitement, curiosity, generosity, and at times hesitation.

The Islamic history and viewing the pilgrimage to Medina / Mecca are worth the trip alone. In Medina, you can see people from all over the world coming to pray in a mosque with a million person capacity under the green dome where Mohammad is buried. In AlUla – you can see both the ancient city of Hegra and a new tourism oasis being constructed. In the large cities like Jeddah and Riyadh – there is both natural beauty from the Red Sea and the Arabian desert as well as culture in the form of delicious Yemeni food and vast shopping complexes serving wealthy urbanites. Our ten day itinerary will give you a taste of it all.

Michelle trying Al Baik, Jennifer in an Abaya at Mount Uhud in Medina, and non-alcoholic beer on a boat in Jeddah

Helpful hints / surprises: 

• Proper attire is a must when visiting. In Medina, we wore an abaya (purchased on Amazon) and covered our hair outside of the hotel. In other cities, we always had on loose pants and shirts and kept a scarf handy.

• September – March is the high season due to cooler weather. We visited in May which is a bit hot (going on 100 degrees Fahrenheit). This led to AlUla feeling like a ghost town during our stay and activities taking place in the mornings and evenings. Malls, restaurants, and cities remain bustling late into the night so that people can take advantage of the cooler temperatures.

• There are cameras everywhere and high police presence, but the country felt extremely safe. The people were very excited to hear we came all the way from America and we were often met with stories about how people served with the US military in the recent past. People were very interested in discussing global politics including American politics and notably the topic of Israel.

• Check out Al Baik, the delicious Saudi version of a KFC. These restaurants used to have a separate section for men and women / families, but that is not the case anymore. Note that many restaurants still have this separation.

• As two female travelers, we were seated in separate sections in restaurants and we were put on the women and children boat for our snorkel trip. Banks are also separated in this manner. While it’s a little confusing, it is pretty apparent where to go.

• There is no alcohol anywhere in the country (besides rumored moonshine made by expats). This is a refreshing change.

Medina: 2 nights spent at the InterContinental Dar Al Iman Madinah 

• This hotel is worth the stay as it has rooms and common areas with views into the Prophet’s Mosque (Al Masjid). The Prophet’s Mosque should not be entered by non-Muslims, but the perimeter is a lively area and the heart of the city.

  
  
  

  

  

  View into the Prophet's Mosque from breakfast in Medina, hologram in one of Medina's many futuristic museums, green dome at Prophet's Mosque

Itinerary in Medina as a non-muslim:

• We spent a lot of time exploring the perimeter of the Prophet’s Mosque as there is so much to observe. The call to prayer brings hoards of people all in different dress from around the world. It’s a moving sight. 

• There are other mosques and streets worth seeing within walking distance from the Prophets Mosque including Al Quba Mosque. This mosque was built on the first day of Mohammad’s migration to Medina and is considered the oldest mosque. Quba Square is located near the Prophet’s Mosque and includes shopping and restaurants. Sultanah Road is another attraction between with restaurants and shops that links the Prophet’s Mosque to Al Quba.

• We got a bit overheated a few times and took a break in the air conditioned, banana and date market. This features stands selling fruits and confections. Its a somewhat interesting attraction.

• We capped off the night with a 7:45pm tour of the Assalam Museum. We made the reservation earlier in the day and were able to tour in the evening. This museum was one of the craziest activities in the country. As a foreigner, you will be assigned a guide and the guide will curate your tour very closely. You will learn about Mohammad and Islam over the course of the ~45 minute, strictly timed tour. We had a tour directed for women and learned about the always changing interpretation of women in the Quaran. This tour was highly monitored by men from the government, we smiled and nodded throughout.

• On our second day in Medina, we visited a few different battlefields that were integral to the formation of Islam. We accessed all locations by Uber although there is a hop on hop off red bus that goes to these sites. This bus is tricky in the heat given its somewhat sparse timetable, so we went with Uber which also tests your patience in Medina. First, we stopped by Mount Uhud which is the location where the Muslims beat the Meccans in 625. This was another massive pilgrimage site that was worth the visit. Afterwards we popped over to the site of the Battle of the Trench. Both sites are incredibly important historically, but it is recommended you read up on the history before or try to have a guide as there is little infrastructure explaining the significance of the sites at each location. We also drove past Masjid al-Qiblatayn. I do not recommend this detour for a non-Muslim as you should only really drive by, however it is important to note that this site is where Mohammed received the demand to change the direction of worship from Jerusalem to Mecca. All of the sites visited were historically significant, but not necessarily marked in any meaningful way to denote this significance.

  

  
  

AlUla: 2 nights at Sahary Resort

• Sahary is one of a few government-run resorts and it was beautiful – it has hiking trails and featured an in-house ostrich on the grounds...

  • This town is being constructed by the Saudi government – it was an incredibly unique place to visit that at times felt like a simulation of sorts. We visited in May which is beginning to be a bit hot, but not unbearable in linen clothes.

  • AlUla is a tourist town first and foremost – there are four men at each cross walk to help you cross the street, there is a fabulous Dunkin Donuts in old town, there are Instagram-y restaurants all over. None of this detracts from the experience, again, it makes it more intriguing.

Touring Hegra, pool at the Habitas hotel, Maraya mirrored building

Itinerary in AlUla:

• Hegra and Dadan tours

  • We went on government-run tours booked through the official AlUla website. Note that Ubers are very hard to come by and that the government funds buses to come to their resorts to transport guests to the main bus point and other attractions. At one point, a bus didn’t come on time and we were driven in our own personal bus to a tour. 

• Hegra was the second biggest city in the Naabetean Empire behind Petra so expect similar architecture at a smaller scale. Note that excavations are still ongoing. Overall, the tour was interesting, but it wasn’t awe-inspiring as we hear Jordan is.

• The Dadan kingdom came after the Naebetean. This was a very enjoyable tour and both tours are doable in the same day if you do one in the morning and one in the afternoon when the weather isn’t so hot.

• In between tours, we visited Habitas for lunch and to spend time by the pool. This resort is worth a visit and can be reached by an Uber if you have some patience.

• That evening, we visited the oasis built around the historical site of the old oasis – this is a massive government project full of guides that have been trained by American consulting firms (and also full of consultants monitoring the site’s progress). We were the only people in the oasis when we went which was somewhat unsettling and also contributes to the weirdness of visiting Saudi now. We were constantly asked about our experience by eager staff around every corner.

• The next day, we visited Maraya – the world’s largest mirrored building which housed an Andy Warhol exhibit inside. This exhibit is evidence of the country’s crossroads – an LGBT artist from NYC displayed in Saudi, a nation with an incredibly strong religious identity. This building is not to be missed.

• We also visited old town on this day – it was incredibly interesting to learn about the mud brick architecture. People lived in old town up until the 1970s when the king moved the population. Old town was completely empty of other tourists given we visited during low season.

• We ended our trip at Elephant’s Rock at sunset.

Jeddah: 2 nights at Ewaa Express – Al Hamra

Winding road in Taif, flags in Jeddah for Arab League Summit, "floating mosque" over the Red Sea

• Jeddah was initially an exciting destination for us because of the snorkeling which ended up being massively disappointing.

  • We went with Al-Haddad, a highly reviewed snorkel and scuba group. We were placed in the women and children boat and a woman brought some of her kids whom were not registered with the coast guard. The men’s boat got through the coast guard check point and the women’s boat was held up for hours. Most women were in burqinis while we were not – this may have been a contributing factor to the coast guard being so stringent on our boat. We ultimately didn’t make it out to snorkel on the tour, however we were able to snorkel at a hotel near the snorkel center.

  • The failed snorkel trip is an example of how this country is not quite ready for tourism. The government still has a very strong grip on society and does not make any exceptions. We visited the yacht club and strolled by the floating mosque and new F1 track to get over our disappointment.

• While we were in town, we attempted to visit the Ritz Carlton for a snack and were greeted at the gate by heavy police presence as the Arab League was meeting in the hotel including Bashir Al-Assad's attendance for the first time in 11 years. We had to table this endeavor as well and were stuck in large amounts of traffic due to the security all around the city for the duration of our stay.

• Jeddah has an impressive old town, Al Balad, that is getting the Vision 2030 treatment – its really getting spruced up and construction is rampant. Al Balad is a perfect place to see traditional Arab architecture and to try Yemeni cuisine.

  • Yemeni food ended up being our favorite cuisine in the country – we ate dishes of a fava bean stew called foul and plates of shakshuka covered in yogurt along with massive flatbreads and spicy tomato sauces. For dessert, don’t miss Masoob, a traditional banana-based dish topped with cream and date syrup, and Adeni tea.

• We also took a day trip to Taif, a truly fascinating city outside of Jeddah where you can enjoy the mountains, see wild monkeys, take a huge cable car up and down the mountain, and enjoy the market. The market opened up around 4pm due to the heat of the day and was incredibly lively. The town is known as the city of roses and its immense amount of honey vendors is evidence of the flowers and agriculture in the surrounding area. We took a bus to and from Taif – note that you will need your passport for bus travel. We were able to see Mecca’s clock tower glowing in the distance during our trip from Taif to Jeddah at night. As a non-Muslim, this is as close as we were going to get.

  

  

  

  Masoob, Yemini breakfast, and a traditional Saudi meal featuring camel

Riyadh: 1 night at Joudyan Olaya hotel 

Touring Diriyah with a friend, hanging out at the Edge of the World, exploring the Riyadh Ritz

• We arrived in Riyadh in the morning and went directly to Diriyah. Diriyah is historically important for Saudi as it is the birthplace of the Kingdom and was the original home of the Saudi royal family from 1727 – 1818. Diriyah is also the recipient of massive investment related to Vision 2030. In addition to the legitimate historical and cultural significance of the site, you will also find restaurants straight out of Manhattan (there is a Sarabeth’s there...).

• After a lunch of spicy chicken nuggets from Al Baik, we did a tour to the Edge of the World. This tour included an hour plus drive to a massive canyon, a short trek in a cave, time to watch the beautiful sunset, and a dinner in the desert under the stars. We highly recommend this activity if you have a free afternoon in the city.

• Our last day in Saudi started with a Yemeni breakfast and a stop by "Justice” Square. This is an empty space now, but its the former site of public executions called Chop Chop Square by some. While there isn’t much to see here, it’s a reminder of the authoritarian nature of the government. Beheadings were still carried out here throughout the 2000s. We also visited Kingdom Tower’s observation deck, the Ritz Carlton (which also served as a large prison used to shake down the royal families’ enemies in 2017...), and the most luxurious shopping center I have ever been to – VIA Riyadh which opened days before we arrived. Each of these activities are worth doing to understand the immense wealth existent in the city.

• Finally, we had dinner at Najd Village before heading to the airport. Seated on cushions in the beautiful patio, we ate traditional platters of camel and lamb capped off with tea.