Jeddah to Al Ula - 7 Manic Days Traveling Glossy Saudi Arabia

The journey did not start well.

I departed Kathmandu after a night of diarrhea (my first and only hit in this 4 month stay, happening now during the last 12 hours of Nepal).

But after some pills, the flight was easy.

And the streaky red sunset over Jeddah Airport was amazing – just don’t take the airport bus as I did as it takes too long into the city; get a taxi. Sure, the Filipino driver was friendly, and chatty, but waiting for the departure and crawling into the city isn’t worth the savings when time is short.

I only had one week, before flying to Lebanon.

It would be a fast-paced introductory trip focusing on the southern sights of Jeddah, Madinah, and the Al Ula region.

Jeddah – Old Town

old jeddah night mosque saudi arabia — The old port town of Jeddah at night located in southern Saudi Arabia on the Red Sea.

Wandering the old town of Jeddah at night was intriguing – it been awhile since I’d traveled in the world of conservative Islam.

The cool breeze soothed, and the darkness kind-of hid me amid the veils and robes as I melted away into shadowy backstreets. The best experience was exploring a traditional, multi-storied house (which was also a museum).

Tasty, inexpensive meals were a take-away half-chicken with pita bread, salad and humous, eaten on my hotel room balcony, looking to mosque minarets and old city street bustle.

jeddah city scenes saudi arabia — Jeddah city scenes at night. TOP-LEFT: Facade of the traditional family house / museum. BOTTOM-RIGHT: Gold jewelry is a big draw of the Jeddah old city shopping experience (but not for me).

In the sun-bleached early morning as I wandered deeper, old Jeddah was now life-less. Old buildings were abandoned amid streets closed by the reconstruction of Vision 2030 and its focus on developing mass tourism in Saudi Arabia.

hyper-modern jeddah train station interior saudi arabia — The stunning, modern-Islamic interior of Jeddah Railway Station, on my way to Madinah. It also has speed-trains to that holiest of Islamic cities: Mecca – which, is off-limits to non-Muslims; so it’s a rapid transport hub serving both holy cities – particularly during the annual Hajj pilgrimage. It’s also just as expensive – no, probably more – as an international airport: check out the prices at Dunkin’ Donuts.

Holy Madinah (Medina)

Traveling to Madinah by high-speed train was a joy, and took only 2 hours.

But navigating to Jeddah train station wasn’t so easy, for the recently-arrived Sri Lankan taxi driver that I flagged down had no idea where to go, and so we relied on my phone map. He was a chatty guy; a teacher when back home, and was happy I’d traveled his country.

dusk at prophet mohhamads mosque madinah saudi arabia — Scenes at dusk at the prophet Mohamad’s (PBUH) Mosque at the Holy City of Madinah. Note: The green dome is his tomb. As a non-Muslim, this is as close as I could get. However, it would’ve been easy to stroll inside the compound as no-one was stopping me – but out of respect for custom, I refrained from going further.

Getting around Madinah was again by taxi – Uber worked, and the young Saudi driver was cool and very welcoming of the foreigner.

At Prophet Mohamad’s (PBUH) Mosque at the Holy City of Madinah, I milled around the vast surrounding gates, looking in. A few people noticed me, but most were too busy with their mission at this sacred site.

But when the dusk call to prayer came and went, and the surroundings emptied, an iman-type guy rushed past me on route to prayer, and then saw me, and motioned / ushered me into prayer. But when I said I wasn’t a Muslim, he turned in disgust, and hurried towards the mosque.

On the quiet, scenic bus journey from Madinah to Al Ula, a young Saudi motioned to me that he had a terrible toothache – I’d watched grimace at times – and did I have any painkillers. I did. Some very strong ones bought without a prescription in Nepal. Gave him one, and after 20 minutes he gave me giant smile and a thumbs up.

Amazing Al Ula

Al Ula region is the pinnacle of Saudi tourism – for now, and the whole area is expensive and fancied-up for (high-end) tourism.

Al Ula old town ruins amid desert canyons of south-western Saudi Arabia. — Al Ula old town ruins and palm oasis amid the desert canyons of south-west Saudi Arabia.

Al Ula Must-See Sights

Al Ula Old Town – ancient Islamic ruins amid an oasis.

*Hegra – Saudi’s match to the tombs of Petra.

*Dadan – more tombs from another ancient culture.

*Jabal Ikmah – ancient stone inscriptions and early scripts.

Hajj Railway Station – the Ottoman Turk line that Lawrence of Arabia attacked in WWI.

Elephant Rock and other strange formations.

Harrat Viewpoint – epic panorama of Al Ula oasis and canyons.

However, without your own or any public transport, seeing many of these sights means taking *government-organized TOURS, and while they’re reasonably priced, it’s a chore being bussed around fast with dozens of selfie-obsessed strangers when you’re used to being an independent backpacker.

There are other sights such as the glass-mirrored concert hall, which I didn’t visit. Also, Al Ula hosts a glamourous winter festival, which I imagine will kill your life savings in a weekend.

Scenes from Al Ula: Street art mural above carpark and veiled women in the shaded lanes of the Al Ula old town. — Scenes from old town of Al Ula: Street art mural above carpark and veiled women in the shaded lanes of the old mud-brick town.

Accommodation in Al Ula

Furthermore, staying in Al Ula is EXPENSIVE, consisting mostly of luxurious, glam-camping desert resorts. Yes, ideal for a romantic cultural holiday, but traveling alone, it would feel a bit weird staying in such places.

I found one of the few local rooms available (2024) in new Al Ula, costing $US 60 a night, which was among the cheapest.

It’s a long way from the sights, but I arranged with my fine host (with extra payment) to get to the Al Ula tourist bus hub, visit other sights, and later be dropped at the airport.

alula oasis from harrat viewpoint saudi arabia — Panoramic **scenic desert views of Al Ula** – seen from Harrat viewpoint.

Abu Ali’s rooms are on Booking.com and his WhatsApp is: Abu Ali Al Ulu / +966 56 500 6332

Khaybar Oasis

This was a day tour as a lone traveler in guided 4WD from Al Ula Tourism. Good value for the price, but little to really see.

Often the desert scenery was beautiful.

stunning desert road saudi arabia — Scenic desert road on route between Al Ula and Khaybar Oasis.

The highway stop was also nice.

saudi arabia bedouin falcon tent — Hospitable Saudi Bedouin with a falcon and their huge guest tent amid the desert, acting as a highway stop. I was the only foreigner there, among two local drivers. Dates and sweet tea were served free of charge.

The sight of Khaybar Oasis was breath-taking.

But the walk amid the palms – not even up to the ruins – was dull. (Afterall, how many of these oasis gardens in Morocco, Algeria, and Egypt had I wandered before) and worse, we only saw one village close-up from below as the rest were closed, to be renovated / rebuilt for the rulers Vision 2030 project.

The Khaybar region has many wonders that I wanted to see, yet were only seen on the exhibition center video.

historical sites in saudi arabia khaybar oasis hilltop fort — **Historical sites in Saudi Arabia**: seen from a cafe and reception center, one of several hilltop fortress villages – deserted in the 1970s – amid the Khaybar oasis. However, you couldn’t just walk there, rather a golf cart took you to a parking area, then you wandered with a guide around the dirt paths of the palm gardens. Only bonus, there was just a handful of us, all Saudis except me.

Evidence shows that Khaybar was inhabited over 200,000 years ago, and the name first surfaced in the 5th century BC as a vital stop along trade routes during Babylonian times, noted for its plentiful water and fertile volcanic soils.

However, I was interested in Khaybar’s prehistoric desert kites – not the flying types but the shape of these ancient mega-traps discovered and named by pilots in the 1950s that dated back 5000 years ago to herd and capture animals. Some of these rock-piled pathways are many kilometers long and ended with stockades many hectares wide. BUT all I saw of them was on that video!

Ancient Tombs of Hegra & Dadan

Over 100 tombs are carved into the rocky outcrops of Hegra.

And like Petra in Jordan, these hewn tombs are the sole remains of an ancient Nabataean city.

hegra tombs panorama saudi arabia — Panorama of some ancient Nabataean tombs at Hegra in Saudi Arabia (near Al Ula).

HOWEVER, Hegra was not a mind-blowing experience like Petra. Back in 1989, I’d had the ruins of Petra to myself, camping in a cave, exploring freely for 3 days.

Hegra is close to awful in comparison to Petra.

YES: the monuments and landscapes are AMAZING in both, but Hegra can only be visited by a shallow, measly 2-hour bus tour!

This was most disappointing.

Rushed between 4 spots with 30 others. No explorations, strictly staying on dust paths – not allowed a meter off-track, no entering any tombs, no time to reflect.

It was simply a selfie, box-tick event.

More comical were some unfortunate ancient stand-ins, dressed in soldier kits or female shawls, adding Disney vibes to the stark desert ruins.

hegra and dadan al ula tourist sites — Al Ula regional tourist sites were so lame to visit on organized tours. TOP-LEFT: Hegra tomb of **Jabal Al Banat** (Qasr Al Bint) with ancient locals; BELOW: **Dadan** “Lion” tombs – which you could not walk up to and had to stay 200 meters away! Instead, the tour bus-load was each given sand-boxes, trowels and brushes to dig for relics like fuckin’ kindergarten kids. I walked away to stare at the cliff tombs thru binoculars.

Going to **Jabal Ikmah** was better as you could see the ancient inscriptions up close. The earliest are dated from the 9th to the 10th centuries BC and include eight languages such as Aramaic, Nabataean, Greek, Arabic, recording journeys, pilgrimages and offerings. RIGHT: A nicely-designed tourist sightseeing bus stop.

But what is unique about Hegra are the preserved inscriptions, recording who commissioned them and when, and sometimes naming the craftsman. Symbols carved on the tombs include eagles, sphinxes, masks, and snakes.

Hegra was my main reason to Saudi, and I was ecstatic until I reached there … yet, I’m glad I saw it but sad, that I couldn’t experience it as I wished.

historical sites in saudi arabia hegra most iconic tomb panorama — Tomb of Lihyan, son of Kuza (Qasr Al Farid) is Hegra’s most iconic tomb, and it’s assumed to have belonged to an important Nabataean family. However, the lower part of the tomb is unfinished, yet if it had been completed, it would’ve been the largest facade at Hegra.

Rant to the Al Ula tourism Board: Why not let tourists hire mountain-bikes – since it’s too far to walk – to explore and take their time around the sights – but no, instead, you opted for PC tourism developed by pointy-arsed, western consultants that’s led to manicured, soul-less, glossy luxury tourism across Al Ula (that is typical of the Arabian Peninsula, except for Yemen). Simply, a rather-crappy experience of wonderful places.

Of the places visited in Saudi Arabia, it was Madinah that surprised me the most, offering the best vibe.

Next time, probably best to hire a car, camp-out, avoid the gloss and just get lost.

Saudi Arabia 1 Week Itinerary

Day 1: PM – Flight from Kathmandu to Jeddah; stay and relax during (Friday) evening in old town. Al Morroj Kareen Hotel is reasonably priced and a good location.

Day 2: Day & night exploring Jeddah.

Day 3: AM – Morning exploration the old Jeddah before fast-train to Madinah (TIME 10:20-12:30 / PRICE $40); The Mayar Hotel is near the station and good; PM – Visit the prophet’s mosque area around dusk.

Day 4: AM – Bus from Madinah to Al Ula (TIME: 10 – 15:30 / PRICE $30). Abu Ali Rooms for cheapest accomodation.

Day 5: AM – Tour to Dadan + Jabal Ikmah; PM – Tour of Hegra; Elephant Rock at dusk.

Day 6: Day trip to Khaybar (= 3 hours EACH way from Al Ula).

Day 7: AM – Harrat viewpoint + Hajj Railway Station; PM – exploring Al Ula old town and oasis, then flight from Al Ula (to Cairo).

Saudi Arabia Travel Advice

VISA: Get your e-visa before arrival here – Saudi tourist visa costs about $105 for multiple entries to 90-day stay and 1 year validity. Also includes medical insurance.

MONEY: Use ATM at airport on arrival. ATMs are easy to find and use.

SIM cards – buy at airport. STC have best coverage. PRICE: $45 = 10 GB.

TAXI APPS are effective. Uber, Jeeny, (Careen is double the cost).

CLOTHES: Cover your legs; maybe arms, yet wearing a t-shirt was fine.

ACCOMMODATION is expensive. No backpacker hostels or budget guesthouses, yet. Cheapest private rooms are from $60-100. Find many on Booking.com, etc.

TOURS: Pre-book tours to ensure a spot; could be sold-out in winter peak season. PRICE: Hegra tour starts at $25. Start your research here: https://www.experiencealula.com/en

TRANSPORT: Public bus and train services are excellent, but routes are limited. Hiring a car offers more options and freedom, but also driving and navigation hassle.