Northern Saudi Arabia
Often dubbed the 'second Petra', Madain Saleh, for many, is on a par with – if not more impressive than – its famous cousin across the border in Jordan…
Must-see attractions in Saudi Arabia
Riyadh
Surrounded by sand, this squat fortification was built around 1865 and is like a scene out of the movies: a big fortress representing an empire. It was…
Saudi Arabia
One of only two mosques in the world that can accommodate a million people, the Prophet’s Mosque holds deep significance for Muslims all over the world…
Pearl Merchants' Neighbourhood
Saudi Arabia
Staring at the mesmerising geometric and floral designs of the carved patterns that adorn the houses and arched gateways of Farasan's former pearl…
Riyadh
This state-of-the-art museum is one of the finest in the Middle East. Encased within modernist architecture, its two floors contain eight well-designed…
Saudi Arabia
The 'Abode of Silence', or the Empty Quarter, covers almost 655,000 sq km and evokes all that was romantic and forbidden for European adventurers, such as…
Jeddah
This souq runs off Al Dahab St and is the most extensive in the Kingdom. The market stalls cut into the heart of the old city and buzz with the activity…
Mecca
The focal point for every Muslim and the biggest mosque in the world, Al Masjid Al Haram is able to host a million worshippers and covers an area of 356…
Saudi Arabia
This is arguably the Kingdom's premier pre-Islamic site and open-air art gallery. Covering an area measuring 39 sq km are some of the most impressive…
Saudi Arabia
Surrounded by a forest of palms, this quaint little Najd mud mosque, with its tall round minaret and engraved wood door, truly evokes the Saudi Arabia of…
Saudi Arabia
A pearling legacy, this mosque, built in 1928 by a wealthy pearl merchant, hints at the island's trade links with the subcontinent. The mosque's…
Saudi Arabia
The mysterious and unique 'hanging village' of Al Habala is one of the genuine wonders of Saudi Arabia. This series of sandstone houses hewn from local…
Saudi Arabia
The result of an underground volcanic explosion, this spectacular crater in the middle of the desert measures 1.3km across and 200m deep. In the middle,…
Jeddah
Beautifully restored and maintained, this historic mosque, one of the finest in Jeddah, is named after one of the four great imams of classical Sunni…
Saudi Arabia
The ancient residents of Al Yanfa came up with a novel way to navigate their congested village built on an uneven hill: they created a network of warrens…
Exhibition of the Two Holy Mosques
Mecca
This little museum is brimming with relics from the two holy mosques, Al Masjid Al Haram in Mecca and the Prophet's Mosque in Medina. These include…
Saudi Arabia
Start at the eastern edge of this area for a wonderful vista of the old mud and slate houses backing onto a fertile patchwork of greenery: this is what…
Northern Saudi Arabia
The melancholy of Al Wajh's beautiful old Hejazi houses, as they stare wistfully out to sea, is apparent in every corner of the town's near-abandoned Al…
Jeddah
With so many traditional houses closed in Al Balad, this privately owned museum in a beautiful three-storey property with stunning Hejazi mashrabiyya …
Saudi Arabia
This cultural village really embodies the artistic spirit of Asir. A mosque with stunning calligraphy graffiti sits surrounded by a series of small art…
Jeddah
Once a smelly, unpleasant stretch of coastline, the corniche in northern Jeddah has been transformed into a pleasant walkway and leisure space. There are…
Riyadh
Not for the faint-hearted or sufferers of vertigo, here high-speed lifts fly you at 180km/h to the 99th-floor Sky Bridge, inside the Kingdom Centre. The…
Al Tayibat City Museum for International Civilisation
Jeddah
This privately owned four-floor collection has displays ranging from pre-Islamic artefacts, exquisite Islamic manuscripts, old coins and weaponry to…
Saudi Arabia
The Taif souq is one of the largest in Saudi Arabia and well worth a wander. Set in the tastefully renovated historic centre, where wonderful little…
Saudi Arabia
Like any flea market worthy of the name, here you'll find old rugs, vintage cameras, wires for contraptions you didn't know existed, and of course that…
Riyadh
The Globe Experience is a spectacular viewing platform inside an enormous glass ball that's 24m in diameter, made of 655 glass panels and suspended just…
Saudi Arabia
The biggest miqat (pilgrim station) complex in Saudi Arabia, this fort-like mosque rises up like a North African kasbah on the southwestern edge of Medina…
Riyadh
Riyadh’s landmark tower, rising 302m high, is a stunning piece of modern architecture – it’s particularly conspicuous at night, when the upper sweep is…
Saudi Arabia
This is a spectacular spot where you can stand on the edge of a sheer precipice, stare out across a dry, barren valley floor and feel like you're at the…
Saudi Arabia
While the Empty Quarter gets all the attention, it is actually far easier to come upon the picturesque desert of romantic Arabia by visiting the beautiful…
Saudi Arabia
The remnants of old Yanbu are not as extensive as some old towns along the Red Sea, but nevertheless it is worth going for a wander in the area directly…
Saudi Arabia
The Arabic word qibla means 'direction' of prayer, and this mosque is said to have two. One facing Mecca, and another above the entrance (look where…
Saudi Arabia
Rising some 3000m above Sarawat Valley, covered in juniper forests and famous for misty, cold weather, the Kingdom's tallest mountain is everything you…
Northern Saudi Arabia
A lone rusting locomotive sits in the sun on its side, its funnel pointing downwards. Derailed and useless, this relic really evokes the impact TE…
Northern Saudi Arabia
This is one of the only surviving bridges of the Hejaz Railway left in Saudi Arabia. The beautiful 150m long red-and-grey-brick arches, stretching over a…
Northern Saudi Arabia
Jebel Al Lawz, rising 2580m above sea level, is one of the only accessible mountains in the Kingdom to experience snowfall in winter. This is what many…
Mecca
This small mountain (761m) is where the Prophet hid for three days with his companion Abu Bakr from the Quraysh tribe. According to Islamic custom, an…
Northern Saudi Arabia
The haunting wreck of cargo ship Georgios G – ambitiously dubbed the 'Saudi Titanic' – sits half-submerged, rusting in the sun after becoming stranded on…
Al Buwayr Hejaz Railway Station & Fort
Northern Saudi Arabia
Sitting off the old Medina–Al Ula road is this refurbished black Hejaz Railway locomotive, almost complete with wagons in tow. There's also a crumbling…
Northern Saudi Arabia
Arabia's only 'elephant' is a huge red rock three storeys in height. The enormous 'body' connects to a slimmer 'trunk' that bulges in just the right areas…
