Explore the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Arrive in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Once a desert trading post on the caravan route, this skyscraper-filled city is fighting a battle between the old and the new. Riyadh has a more traditional atmosphere than its red sea sister, Jeddah, and its historical significance as the birthplace of modern Saudi Arabia can be seen in the contrast between the modern, gleaming buildings in the business district, and the many forts, museums and colourful souks that confirm the city's ancient past.

Due to the number of evening flights into Riyadh, the Tour Leader plans to do the welcome meeting in the morning of Day 2. There are no planned activities today, so you can arrive into Riyadh at any time. If you would like to receive a complimentary transfer today, you'll need to arrive into King Khalid International Airport (RUH), which is around 40 minutes' drive.

If your flight arrives earlier in the day, you may wish to ascend the Faisaliah Tower or the Sky Bridge for their vantage points over the city. We will visit the Sky Bridge tomorrow but not at sunset, and it gives a great view of the Riyadh skyline as the sun goes down.

Saudi Arabia is a vast country, so there will be some quite long drives with key stops along the way and a few early starts. We will use a comfortable charter bus throughout the itinerary. Please speak to your leader if you have any questions about driving times.

Riyadh is a chaotic, sprawling city, where ancient palaces and palm trees are found just a few traffic-laden streets away from bright, modern architecture. We'll get a feeling of both the old and new today.

Before the 1930s, Riyadh was a small, walled oasis town in what was then known as the Second Saudi State. After Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud conquered the state in the late 1920s he retook his family's ancient seat and brought together most of the Arabian Peninsula in what he went on to name 'Saudi Arabia'. We'll learn some of this history in a trip to the National Museum this morning - the museum is enormous so we will pick and choose some of the key exhibits. If you arrive to Riyadh early on day 1 it's well worth spending more time here (please note that the museum has been closed at the end of 2022. It is planned to reopen in January 2023, at the discretion of the management). We'll go on to visit Masmak Fortress, the most prominent remnant of the old walled oasis town of Riyadh. From here, we visit the modern part of the city, taking the lift up the Kingdom Tower skyscraper for impressive views.

In the afternoon, we'll be meeting a Saudi local for a city tour with a difference. Riyadh, like most Saudi Arabian cities, is a slave to the motor vehicle. Due to a combination of the heat and the status that cars give, Saudis drive everywhere - this means that you're unlikely to find people walking around. We, however, will be exploring on foot today in one of the neighbourhoods that still enjoys some life on the streets. We'll start at the Tabya Souk, a classic market with mostly female vendors. Then we'll stroll to Tahliya Street and Suleimaniya Street, where the 70's meet modern day architecture. We'll see how the city has grown quite dramatically over the last 30-40 years, and enjoy some tea and pastries at a local bakery. We then drive to Deera, close to our hotel, where we'll explore this market area and some of the vendors who have been selling here for years. This walking tour will give you the opportunity to discuss the changes that Saudi Arabia has experienced in recent years, and talk to a woman who's family has lived through many of the Kingdom's changing governments.

Note that the timings for this day may change.

Leaving Riyadh this morning, we'll drive north-west to the Ushaiqer Heritage Village, a winding maze of alleyways and mud-brick houses. Nearby springs and palm groves made this a convenient stopping point for ancient pilgrims to Mecca. The village is a glimpse into an old way of life, with some incredible examples of ancient Nadji architecture. It's still partially inhabited today, and there is a lot of protection work going on here to ensure that it retains its character for future generations.

From here we drive on to Buraidah. The area is one of the country's biggest date producers, and we have the chance to sample produce with a visit to a date shop before our arrival at the hotel.

Overall driving time: approx. 6 hours.

Rise early this morning to drive to the dusty outskirts of Buraidah, where we find the Kingdom's famous camel market. A chaotic melee of people, sounds and smells, the daily market sees hundreds of camels, as well as sheep and goats, being bought and sold by local Saudis. A visit to the market is a glimpse at traditions that haven't changed in hundreds of years. The auctions are loud and theatrical, with the best camels going for many thousands of dollars.

In the early afternoon we set off to Ha'il, arriving in the early afternoon. This small town lies on the edge of the massive Jabal Aja protected area, and is surrounded by the red granite hills of this desert range. We'll explore the town this afternoon, including the massive Aarif fortress. This 17th-century monolith is visible on its hilltop position from anywhere in Ha'il.

Overall driving time: approx. 4 hours.

The oasis of Jubbah was once a huge inland lake, rich in wildlife and plant life and on the edge of the windswept Nafud Desert. On a set of sandstone rocks, which pop out of the sandy floor at the western edge of this oasis town, we'll find some of the Middle East's most extensive and important ancient rock carvings. These Neolithic petroglyphs date back as early as 5500BC, and depict scenes of everyday life; hunting is widely represented, and from the images we can see the kind of animals that would have been prevalent at the watering hole, from camel to ibex. Jubbah's rock art has been a crucial link in the chain for palaeontologists to put together a picture of Neolithic human life not just in the Middle East but also spreading through north Africa.

From here we drive to AlUla and our desert-based accommodation.

Overall driving time: approx. 8 hours

A short drive this morning brings us to the Lion Tombs of Dedan. Pre-dating the Nabatean Empire, the kings of Dedan, and later named Lihyan, ruled from the 6th to the 2nd Century BC. At their capital, Dedan, the remains of ancient tombs have been found hewn into the rockface at different heights and of different sizes. The name 'Lions Tomb' comes from the carved lion sculptures found outside one of the necropolis entrances - denoting the importance of its owner.

From here, we continue to what may be one of the highlights of our Saudi Arabian journey - the ancient Nabatean city of Hegra. This set of ornately carved tombs was constructed in the 1st Century AD by the Nabatean people, and it would become their second-largest city after the capital, Petra, in Jordan. These magnificent tombs are eerily quiet in contrast to Petra, but as tourism grows we can expect this to change dramatically within the next few years. For the moment, what was once a thriving city at the southern-most part of the spice trade, and a key part of the Nabatean Empire, is now a deserted outpost, with many buildings partially hidden under layers of sand.

We end our day at Elephant Rock, an instantly-recognisable geological feature that takes its name from its elephantine shape. Dinner is included this evening at our desert accommodation.

Please note, the sites around Al Ula currently depend on timed tickets, so the order of our visits may change. We may also have to split the group in two depending on the maximum numbers permitted at either site.

Driving south to Medina, the desert extends before us, with the Sarawat Mountains flanking us to the left. En route, we will stop at an old Hejaz Railway Station - the building, and it's partly reconstructed train, is now fenced off but if we're lucky we'll be able to find a gap in which to get closer. The Hejaz Railway was the brainchild of the Ottomans, an attempt to pull together their disparate empire from the reaches of Constantinople to the holy site of Mecca. In the early 1900s, the railroad was complete from Damascus to Medina, and it was a strategic crown in the Ottoman Empire. Its glory days didn't last long however, and the railroad was almost completely destroyed during World War One and the Arab Rising.

On arrival to the holy city of Medina, we'll visit the Archer's Hill - an important battle site in Islamic history. Medina is the Islamic world's second holy city after Mecca, and the Prophet's Mosque, right in the centre of the city, is home to the grave of the Prophet Mohammed. This innermost part of the city is restricted to Muslims, but we will take the opportunity to visit those places that we can. We also aim to visit a date producer, where we'll be welcomed with Arabic coffee and dates, and be shown a little of how these dates are collected. The owner of the establishment has a rather bizarre museum full of old collectables, from arabic rugs and clothing to old radios and jewellery - in true Saudi style, the museum opens on a whim so we may have chance to take a look around.

This evening, we will be having a meal with a local Saudi family, giving us a fantastic opportunity to exchange our lives with local people and discuss the importance of the Islamic faith with those living in its heart. The delicious meal will usually include a tagine, with vegetarian options, a local rice dish, salads, dessert and, of course, coffee and dates.

One of the most dramatic natural wonders in Saudi Arabia is our destination this morning, as we set out from Medina and drive south. At a massive four kilometres wide, the Al Wahbah Crater was originally thought to have been formed by a meteorite crashing to earth, but it is now generally accepted to have been created by volcanic activity. The base of the crater is encrusted with salt crystals, forming an enormous white ring in the centre of the vast hole. We'll have a picnic lunch here and take a short walk around some of the viewpoints over the crater.

From here we continue up a winding road, to the start of a completely different side of Saudi Arabia - the cool mountains of the south. Our final destination is Ta'if, located at approximately 1800m altitude. This evening we'll take a stroll through its lively souk, a thronging maze of shop fronts selling goods from honey and perfume to ornate jewellery.

Overall driving time: approx. 8 hours

Ta'if is surrounded by lush wadis and mountains that bloom with roses in April. More than 900 farms produce upwards of 300 million roses for worldwide export each year, and it's from this industry that the city takes its name, the 'City of Roses'. We'll visit a rose farm this morning (there will be no blooms outside of March-April), and while in Ta'if you may like to purchase rosewater, scented rose oil or a refreshing rose tea as a souvenir of your time here. We'll also drive to a viewpoint with excellent views over the mountainside - the first time we've really experienced the mountains during our time in Saudi Arabia. During our time in Ta'if and Bahah we may see some of the wild baboons that roam by the roadsides. We also aim to visit the Shareef Heritage Museum during our time here.

In the afternoon we leave the city for the Al Bahah region. If Ta'if has given us a taster of life outside of the desert, Al Bahah will strip us of all illusions that Saudi Arabia is a mass of dust and sand. At 2200m altitude, the region is surrounded by forest and barren rock formations, with hairpin bends taking travellers to small mountain top villages. We'll arrive in the evening and settle in to our hotel.

Spend a day of adventure exploring everything that this wonderful area has to offer. We set out from our hotel onto the 25 tunnels road - a deeply dramatic road of tight hairpin bends that descends hundreds of metres in a short time. We'll visit the 600 year-old marble village of Thee Ain, a mysterious looking set of stone houses that were originally built as a citadel on top of a white marble outcrop, surrounded by banana plantations, fruit trees and mountains. The 8th-century construction is visually magnificent from afar, and fascinating close up. We'll have a delicious al fresco lunch in a calm and shady spot, in the shadow of the mountain village.

After our visit here we set off to meet our 4WD vehicles, for our adventurous drive to Shada Mountain, navigating hairpin bends on our uphill journey. At the top is a small 'resort' - a peaceful homestay that has several small rooms, a tranquil garden of fruit trees and a dramatic setting overlooking the valley below. We'll undertake an easy-to-moderate walk here among some remarkable rock formations. The walk itself is flat, but on some rocky terrain with a couple of narrow sections as we negotiate the space between rocks. These fantastical grottos and caves were, until recently, inhabited by humans - with some of the cave-dwellings going back hundreds of years. We go back to the city for dinner and our hotel.

We finally meet the Red Sea today, as we journey back northwards towards the coastal city of Jeddah. It's a long day of driving, but we'll make stops en route. Jeddah is the largest commercial city in Saudi Arabia. A major port, a historical Red Sea trading point, and an important gateway for the thousands of yearly pilgrims heading to Mecca or Medina, the city has a bustling atmosphere of opportunity and growth.

We hope to arrive around 4pm, although this may depend on traffic. On arrival we'll be free to explore the city - the Islamic Museum is one of our options, a veritable showcase of Arab history and tradition. Alternatively, you may wish to go for a walk along the corniche, which is a key spot for locals to socialise, stroll and enjoy the evening air.

Overall driving time: approx. 5.5 hours

We'll explore Jeddah today, beginning with a visit to the enormous fish market. Seafood is essential to the economy of Jeddah, and a visit to this thriving fish market puts this into perspective. We'll also explore Jeddah's corniche, which extends many miles along the Red Sea coast - this long sea front incorporates parks, mosques and playgrounds, and is lined with sculptures that culminate at the small open-air sculpture 'museum' in the north of the city.

After lunch we drive to the UNESCO-listed old town of Al Balad. A quirk of Saudi culture, which we will have noticed throughout the trip, is that many places only come alive after 4pm, with souks, shops and cafes opening late into the night. This is no different in Al Balad. Founded in the 7th Century, Al Balad was once the city centre of Jeddah and an essential Red Sea port. This wonder of architecture is famous for its wooden 'roshans' (intricately carved facades), which provide fascinating subjects for photographers. During our guided tour of Al Balad we'll enter some of the houses for a perspective on how people lived and worked in old Arabia. We'll also have some free time to explore the maze of narrow streets that lead into the Souk Al Alawi section of Balad - in the late afternoon this area is transformed into a busy network of shops selling rugs, herbs, silver and perfume, as well as a lively street market with everything from okra and rice to meat and chilli peppers.

Our included meal this evening will give us the opportunity to sample what Jeddah is really known for - fish! We'll go to one of the city's popular fish restaurants and try the local catch. Normally the menu includes a delicious and creamy fish chowder, alongside a main of fish (grouper or parrotfish are common) and shrimp, together with hummous, vine leaves, rice and the trimmings. It's a fitting end to our Saudi Arabian journey.

The trip ends after breakfast at our hotel in Jeddah.

There are no activities planned today, so you are free to depart from Jeddah at any time. If your flight is departing later in the day, luggage storage facilities are available at our hotel. If you would like to receive a complimentary airport transfer today, you need to depart from King Abdulasiz International Airport (JED), which is a 20 minute drive from the hotel.