Saudi Explorer: Across the Arabian Peninsula

Fly from London to Riyadh, arriving in the evening. We’ll be met at Riyadh airport and driven to our hotel for the night.

Accommodation: Ramada by Wyndham Riyadh (or similar)

The adventure begins in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. We meet at the hotel. Check-in is available from mid-afternoon and we have a welcome briefing this evening, our first chance to meet as a group.

Accommodation: Ramada by Wyndham Riyadh (or similar)

We start early today and begin our journey (250mi/400km) by road to Buraydah, stopping on the way. The highlight of the day is Ushaiger Heritage Village, one of the oldest settlements in the region, which has stunning traditional Najdi architecture.

Following time at Ushaiger, we continue, passing the villages of Al Mithnab (a traditional fortified village) and Al-Ghat.

In the heart of the Arabian Peninsula, Buraydah is the capital of Al-Qassim province and lies equidistant from the Red Sea to the west and the Persian Gulf to the east. The climate is typical of the desert, with hot summers, cold winters and low humidity. Agriculture is still the cornerstone of the economy here, where crops include traditional oasis produce such as dates, lemons, oranges and other fruits. The area is also known for having fine traditional mudbrick architecture. The beautifully restored Souq Musawkaf in Unaizah is one of the best examples and comes to life in the evenings.

We visit Al Bassam Heritage House in Unaizah, about 25 minutes from Buraydah. The house was built in 1955 using traditional Najdi ventilation and lighting techniques. It features 30 rooms on two floors, including bedrooms, guestrooms and storage rooms. Inside, enjoy ancient crafts, traditional foods, folk tales, poems, and ancestral heritage and history.

We head back into the city to stroll through the date market to pick up some tasty treats before check-in at the hotel. Our visit to the city includes the Women’s Souq and Al Jerredah Souq, which specialise in arts and crafts.

We drive about 250mi (400km) today.

Accommodation: Radisson Blu Buraydah (or similar)

Early this morning, we visit Buraydah Camel Market – the largest in the world! Here, thousands of camels, goats and sheep are bought and sold, along with saddles and other accessories. This is a chaotic and truly unique Saudi experience.

After, we leave Al-Qassim province and head further into the desert. We pause at the pre-Islamic city of Faid, a stopover on old caravan routes. On our three-hour drive, we notice a change in terrain from dunes and oases to the imposing granite formations of Jebel Aja near the city of Hail. Along the way, we cross the easternmost lava fields of Saudi Arabia, Harrat Al-Hutaymah, where a volcanic crater can be visited. We arrive in Hail around lunchtime and check into our hotel.

We drive about 175mi (280km) today.

Accommodation: Holiday Villa Hail (or similar)

We begin the day by heading to Jubbah, which lies on an ancient lake. Several ancient human settlements from the Middle Paleolithic period have been found here, around the margin of the paleolake. Jubbah is surrounded by large sandstone outcrops filled with ancient petroglyphs and inscriptions, which form part of a Unesco World Heritage site. The inscriptions depict animals such as aurochs, cheetahs and lions, which were present when the region had a wetter, savannah-like climate.

After our visit to Jubbah, we drive to AlUla. The journey passes through Nefud Al Kabir, which literally means the great extent of dunes. It is 180mi (290km) long and 140mi (225km) wide. We arrive into AlUla early evening and check into our beautifully located permanent desert camp, our base for the next two nights.

We drive about 300mi (480km) today.

Accommodation: Sahary Resort (or similar)

AlUla is an ancient oasis that has been inhabited for the last 7,000 years, evidenced by ancient carvings.

In the morning, we visit the ancient city of Dadan, among the most significant discoveries in AlUla. It was the capital of both the Dadan and Lihyan kingdoms and dates to between the late ninth and early eighth century BCE (Dadan kingdom) and fifth to second century BCE (Lihyan kingdom). During the first millennium BCE, the city developed thanks to a strategic location on the frankincense trade road. The Nabatean people from Petra settled 19mi (30km) north of Dadan in Al-Hijr, where they built monumental tombs similar to those in Petra.

We have time for lunch in the centre of AlUla, where there is a good choice of restaurants, then continue to the Old City of AlUla. The city had nearly 900 houses and five town squares and the remains of some of the original stone and mudbrick buildings can still be seen today. In the 12^th century, Old AlUla became an important settlement along the pilgrimage route from Damascus to Mecca.

Accommodation: Sahary Resort (or similar)

We begin our day with a visit to the Unesco World Heritage site of Hegra (Madain Saleh). Hegra is the southernmost major city of the Nabatean Kingdom, which flourished thanks to the caravan trade between the second century BCE until the Roman conquest in 106 CE. It is the second richest Nabatean city in terms of monumental tombs with more than 130 decorated funeral monuments including some of the most vibrant and well-conserved architectural achievements of the Nabatean builders. We explore this fascinating site and the secrets of its tombs, ancient inscriptions, stone structures and more. In the afternoon, we drive to the holy city of Medina.

We drive about 205mi (330km) today.

Accommodation: La Meriden (or similar)

This morning, we visit some of the outer parts of Medina. While tourists are strictly forbidden from visiting Mecca, we can see some parts of Medina, Islam’s second holiest city and a major pilgrimage site. We view the vast Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (Prophet’s Mosque) from the outside – the striking Green Dome rises above the tombs of the Prophet Muhammad and early Islamic leaders Abu Bakr and Umar. The Masjid al-Qiblatain (Qiblatain Mosque) is known as the site where the Prophet Muhammad received the command to change the direction of prayer to Mecca. We also see some of the seven mosques from a distance. We visit the Dar Al Madina museum, which showcases the heritage and history of Medina through different archaeological collections, visual galleries and rare images. We visit the city edges, avoiding the pilgrimage areas, and conclude the day with a short walk near Mount Uhud.

In the afternoon, we travel by high-speed train to Jeddah, covering more than 250mi (400km) in less than two hours. Check-in procedures for the train are similar to that of a flight, including security checks. On arrival in Jeddah, we are taken to our hotel for the night.

Accommodation: Frontel Hotel (or similar)

We start our tour with a visit to Abdul Raouf Khalil Museum, which presents local and Arabian heritage, and then continue to old Jeddah. We enjoy a wonderful walk in Al-Balad, the old part of the city and another Unesco World Heritage site. This ­­old town tour takes us to the old market and galleries and we can try local Jeddah food. While visiting Al-Balad, we see Beit Nassif (from the outside only), one of the prominent renovated structures in the old city, which dates to the mid-1800s. The five-storey building provides a rare opportunity for visitors to experience the blend of traditional architecture with modernity. We also visit Gabel Street.

After lunch, we drive to Jeddah Corniche, a 19mi (30km) Red Sea resort with a coastal road, recreation areas, pavilions and large-scale civic sculptures.

Accommodation: Frontel Hotel (or similar)

We start our journey driving up the Sarawat Mountains, which spread along the western side of the Arabian Peninsula from Yemen to Jordan. Once we have passed the crest, peaking at nearly 6,560ft (2,000m) above sea level, we descend the eastern side towards the city of Taif.

Taif, thanks to its location above 5,250ft (1,600m), benefits from cooler weather, especially in summer when people travel there for its greenery, lower temperatures, beautiful scenery and relaxed atmosphere. Our tour starts with a drive to enjoy the majestic panoramic view of Al Hada mountain. In the afternoon, we visit a rose factory where the Taif people gather local roses to make one of the best rose perfumes in the world. Our tour finishes at the Sharif Museum.

We drive about 125mi (200km) today.

Accommodation: Iris Boutique Hotel (or similar)

We start our journey to Al Bahah this morning, a city in the Hejaz area of western Saudi Arabia. Surrounded by more than 40 forests and with a pleasant climate, the capital of the Al Bahah region is one of the prime tourist attractions in the kingdom. On arrival, we visit the Marble Village of Dhee Ayn. It’s an amazing place, showcasing the quality of ancient construction. The village was named after the water that flows from the nearby mountains and the area is famous for banana and other fruit plantations. The village dates back about 400 years and has witnessed battles between the Ottoman Turks and its inhabitants.

Following time for lunch, we drive to Raghadan Forest Park and Al-Surat Mountains to visit Al Mud village then to Khairah Forest Park before returning to our hotel.

We drive about 155mi (250km) today.

Accommodation: Cloud City Hotel / ex Swiss Spirit (or similar)

Today we discover the highlands of Al Bahah, more than 6,560ft (2,000m) above sea level. We start with a visit to traditional stone houses typical of the southern mountains of Arabia. Then we visit amazing viewpoints from the vertiginous cliffs of the Sarawat mountain range near Al Bahah and the nearby city of Baljureshi.

Later, we drive to Sheda. Nestled halfway up the peak of Jabal Mussala Ibrahim, this hidden village offers dramatic views across the green cliffs and valleys of the Sarawat Mountains. As we venture up, the air becomes much cooler and drier, which has allowed rare plants such as the white capparis cartilage flower (sometimes called cartilage caper) and the dendrosicyos tree (also known as the cucumber tree) to grow. Along the picturesque drive up the slopes, we pass ancient stone houses on the roadside, offering a glimpse of a time and community past. To complete the picture-postcard view, a nearby natural spring provides water to a lush oasis surrounding the bottom of the hill. The village was named after a water spring (ayn in Arabic) that flows continuously from the nearby mountains to several reservoirs.

Accommodation: Cloud City Hotel / ex Swiss Spirit (or similar)

This morning, we fly from Al Baha to Dammam on the Persian (or Arabian) Gulf. We visit Dammam briefly, then explore the Old Al Uqayr Seaport on beautiful Half-Moon Bay. The old port includes administrative buildings, a fort and a market. It was built by the Ottomans in the 17th century and has been partly restored recently.

After visiting Al Uqayr, we head towards Al Ahsa Oasis, a Unesco World Heritage site. We start our exploration of the area at a stunning viewpoint over Yellow Lake, which is named after the colour of the surrounding dunes. This landscape of flat ground, rich with water in between dunes, is typical of the Eastern Province and is called sabkha. We drive through dunes and sabkhas, before reaching our destination, the city of Hofuf. Set in an expansive oasis with more than 2m palm trees, it ranks among the leading date producers in the world.

Accommodation: Garden Plaza, Hofuf (or similar)

This morning, we explore Hofuf, the main city in Al Ahsa region. Al Ahsa itself hosts an ancient secret: the Greek geographer Strabo described an ancient Arab kingdom whose capital Gerrha had “fancy tools made out of gold and silver, large homes which have their doors, walls and roofs filled with gold, silver, and holy stones”. This site has not been found by archaeologists but one of the candidates is Hofuf. We visit Ibrahim Fort and its mosque, then Jebel Qarah, a limestone outcrop with caves and canyons that offers a viewpoint over the huge palm tree cultivations. We finish the day at the historic mosque of Jawatha.

Accommodation: Garden Plaza, Hofuf (or similar)

This morning, we take a high-speed train from Hofuf to Riyadh. The journey takes about two hours. We start our tour of Riyadh with a visit to the National Museum, with exhibits on Saudi heritage and culture, giving an overview of Arabian civilisation from prehistory to the modern era.

We pass Riyadh Tower, a 99-storey skyscraper, which overtook the 875ft (267m) Faisaliah Tower as the tallest tower in Saudi Arabia in 2002. We continue to Masmak Fort and its museum, which depicts the history of the conquest of Arabia by the Al-Saud family. The palace was built during the reign of Abdullah bin Rashid in 1895 to serve as a military garrison for the Abdullah bin Rashid army. King Abdulaziz, the father of the nation today, captured the fort in 1902 making it the birthplace of the third Saudi Kingdom. We can have lunch at one of the traditional restaurants in the city. We visit Dira Souq and learn about Saudi traditional clothing and the way in which it is made. In the evening, we visit Diriyah for a sound-and-light show at the ruins.

As most flights depart very early tomorrow morning, we just include a small number of hotel rooms shared between the whole group for tonight, allowing for a shower and repacking of bags. If you would like your own room for tonight, this is possible at additional cost, please let us know at the time of booking.

There’s a transfer to the airport very late tonight.