My 2024 AlUla Expedition (at last)
An unforgettable four day immersion into millions of years of history and ancient civilization dating back 1st and 2nd centuries.
Day 1
On a Friday last October, I took a 10am flight to AlUla from Riyadh.
I flew flynas, a local airline. Save and screenshot your purchase options, especially if you purchase luggage or pay for a seat. You will thank me later. The email or app will not show details and the agents systems are not synced.
I took an Uber to the hotel. It was an easy drive and cheaper than the hotel’s option.
Airport is 30 mins away from the city centre and the drive into the city is straightforward. There is no traffic.
The terrain is expansive. Part desert with rocky red mountains and oasis.
That was one part I was not expecting (nor was focused on during research) finding oasis in the middle of the desert. It will take your breath away.
Checked in to Cloud 7 Residence
Its the largest property with ~300 rooms, even though less luxurious, consider it a top line hotel quality in the US. Arabian hospitality is at a different scale. I would describe it was minimalist luxury category.
Qahwah and dates on arrival.
After check-in orientation, the porter took me and my luggage on a golf cart giving a mini property tour, on the way to my room.
I requested a quiet room with views of the mountain and the team did not disappoint.
I had breakfast at the hotel every morning. The buffet has great options. There are two restaurants on site, a gym, and swimming pool.
I took Cloud 7 Residence’s guest shuttle to the city centre. I had lunch at Somewhere restaurant, an absolutely beautiful spot, where I walked in without reservations. I was seated outside and learned there was an oasis on the property that I could walk through. After a great salad, I explored the premises. I couldn’t have picked a better spot to start with. Marveling at the contrasting landscape from rocky to palm trees juxtaposed in one view. Subhanallah or praise be to the marvelous nature!
After lunch, I walked around the town, exploring, stretching my legs and in awe of the rock formations buttressing the city. Don’t veer off off the tourist path, like I did, and invite stares. I was instantly curious about the geology of the fascinating landscape. Instead of fumbling over words to describe the geological awe, I have compiled a dedicated geology post (previous post) and nerd out with me. Also check out RCU’s Geology of AlUla site.
There are six different types of rock types and formations that have shaped the landscape over 500 million years. While everyday I marveled at the red-brown rocks that were inhabited by the ancient tribes and civilizations thousands of years ago, it was at the Harrat Viewing Point that I was stunned by how expansive and far out the mountains stretched. One working theory is that the entire land was submerged under the sea. The fossil formations, inscriptions and new discoveries are being studied. Ps, I hope RCU is creating transportation options to the remote viewing point. Keep your driver or have one booked to pick you up.
The Old Town has been meticulously restored, and the work continues. Historic sites like the Old Town have drop off points and cars are not allowed. In fact its hard to miss that the cars, buses and trucks all travel outside the perimeter of the sites. Within the sites, there are electric vehicles that move slow and transport the weary visitors. The Old Town is out of another period, like a Medina of yesteryears. The one to two story tall buildings have been restored close to their original state. Old Town’s main walkway is peppered by stores selling artisanal wares, artistic items from pottery, clothing, premium dates to and designer items. All local.
My AlUla research was rushed and I had relied heavily on recommendations. Cloud 7 Residence was less frou frou than some of the other resort properties build recently such as Shaden Resort, Dar Tantoura Al House Hotel in Old City, Chedi Hegra in Old Town, and the Banyan Tree.
If I return and budget is not a problem, I would stay at Dar Tantoura, Chedi Hegra in Old Town or the Banyan Tree.
Back to the trip.
Day 2
Saturday morning I had breakfast at the hotel restaurant buffet.
Took an uber to RCU’s Visitor Centre where all tours are centralized.
The funny thing is that the Visitor Centre sits across the road (that traverses a highway) from the bus pick-up point. There isn’t a great deal of traffic, and there is no pedestrian path carved out. The taxis and trucks did slow down. Perhaps RCU can reconsider this. All Visitor Centre locations give out dried fruit snacks and fresh juices to keep us nourished and hydrated. The climate can be unforgiving.
I switched my tickets to start the visit with Hegra (formally Mada’in Saleh). Mada’in Saleh’s history has been part of ‘cursed’ land where tragic events took place and Muslims believed should not be visited. The Saudi government takes a different view now and doesn’t hold on the older interpretation. My family similarly discouraged me. I admit I was momentarily confused. Should I not visit the site on my bucket list for 5 years, since the day it opened up? I visited Petra and there are no such persistent myths there. Curious, read this piece.
After few days of research and confusion, I decided to stick to my plans.
I visited the Tombs of Al Hegra. The tombs raison d’etre is similar to Petra’s narrative, that were built by rich families to prepare for afterlife. The larger the tomb, the higher the status of the family. Each tomb had a steps that the tour guide Fahad joked is the “stairway to heaven” built to help the soul ascend to heaven in death. We visited the Qasr Bint tomb and one that housed 30-40 graves. These burial sites were planned ahead.
Qasr al Farid, the iconic tomb of Lihyan, son of Kuza is the largest one onsite. There are small details that indicate that it was unfinished, and the story goes that Lihyan died far away and is not even buried in the tomb. The workers stopped the work, at the front, with unfinished stones at the foot of the tomb entry.
Similar to Petra, the tombs are carved in the rock formations. There are engravings that tell stories. Carvings of the gods (or idols) that are carved sometimes in the entryway. The first stop at the site was a ”divan” or lounge like place for congregations. It was built with acoustics in mind. Our visit was dramatic. The winds had picked up and we got caught in a little sandstorm. I was proud to be well prepared with my long brimmed hat, mask, sunglasses, flowy abaya, full pants and sneakers that were bound to be filled with the microscopic sand. One important tip, try to dress like the locals who are acclimated to the local climate and terrain. The flowy abaya (picture a long cape) saved me, not just from the sandstorm but from the intensity of the sun and dry climate. It creates a mini microclimate and airflow rather than 100% exposure.
Our guide Fahad was a young, bubbly, funny character. We chatted and he shared anecdotes from his trip to New York. He asked me what tour I was taking the next day (it was Dadan and Jabal Ikmah) and told me who the tour guide was going to be.
We took a photo at the “face rock formation” that apparently was featured in Kandahar action movie with Gerard Butler. See photo in my previous post.
After initially fretting about my visit duration, I decided that I, in fact, did not have enough time to experience AlUla. After the shuttle took us back to the Visitor Center, I took another one to the Elephant Rock. I got dropped off at the Shaden hotel, and ended up waiting there for the next connection. I grabbed some qahwah in the hotel lobby. It was getting dark, and I called an uber rather than explore the hotel views enveloped the the rock formations all around. I am pleasantly surprised to see the prices as I write this, its $165 (cheap!) for a night. It was much more last October when I visited.
Among the sites of AlUla, Jabal Alfil or the Elephant Rock is a popular filming location, has been featured in the 2023 movie Kandahar with Gerard Butler and Cherry starring Tom Holland.
I bet the views are equally stunning during the day. There are pits dug in the ground, with seating, to enjoy coffee or food while admiring the landscape. There is music playing and few truck food vendors are on site. Don’t expect to have a full meal.
I ended up spending more time than I thought I would. A young Saudi woman who worked there struck up a conversation, shared that she was in university and staying in AlUla for the job. She offered to take my photos.
I took the shuttle back from Elephant Rock to the Visitor Center, as uber was impossible to find. The location is a further from the city and I suspect the locals do their own thing after dark. From the Visitor Centre I did find an uber back to the Cloud 7. It would have been nice to shave off the 30-40mins at the end of the long adventurous day.
Day 3
Sunday breakfast was at the hotel restaurant buffet. I took an uber to RCU’s Visitor Centre. Today Dadan and Jabal Ikmah tours were part of the plan. Dadan and Lihyan kingdoms predate the Nabataens period. It is a well preserved time capsule.
This is quite different than the Nabatean route with exquisite and elaborate tombs. The scale is also different. Small almost perfect rectangular carved room-sized doors at the red mountain base. We used to binoculars to see the gods carved above. The site does not allow going up and close. We took compact EV shuttles to the other side of the site. Here we had the option of walking up to see these carved rooms, also tombs, and see the inscriptions up close. Fascinating.
As I had noticed the day before, the staff is well informed and trained and could respond to basic questions that were presumably part of the training. Beyond which, my nerdy curiosity needed to get online and research. I couldn’t find any reading materials or published guides.
After Dadan, we took off to Jabal Ikmah, the site of the library. Its called so with the rock inscriptions on either side through a rocky pathway. Every site has its own dedicated Visitor Centre with a store. We were always greeted with local juice concoctions, my favourite was pomegranate rose. The last there asked, weren’t you at the Hegra site yesterday? Well yes I was! It was nice to be recognized and welcomed. Being Pakistani is received warmly and my accent gives away my American home.
Library was the 3rd stop.
This stop has a walk thats exposed and with the hat and abaya combo it was bearable.
The young Saudi tour guide, Fatima, struck up a conversation. Gregarious and friendly she talked about herself, how she enjoyed meeting tourists, being at university and staying in AlUla for the job. She offered to take my photos, instructed me to take off my abaya and told me to pose! I got some great photos at the library!
On our way back, we went to the rock carving station. Using the old hieroglyphs we were instructed to carve out our names on a piece of rock that we were to take home. I must look for it.
While on paper the Dadan and Jabal Ikmah tour might seem short, don’t be fooled, the distances and movement between the sites add time. Its designed and laid out well.
After the tours, I was wiped. I had spotted a wellness festival was underway in the app and I bought a pass to Five Senses. I did not book a massage since I did not have play by play day plan. You have to roll with the punches. I had a good lunch at Five Senses, took a drum class in the open with a British mother-daughter duo against stunning red rocks. I took the yoga class in the same spot and had good movement after a hot day. I got a gift on exit.
Beat, I called an uber and went up to Harrat Viewing Point. No words can describe the stunning bird’s eye view of AlUla. Imagine being at the highest point, far above the top of the rocky red mountains, that I had been admiring. The city was to the right, mountains to the right left and all around us. I decided not to stay for dinner, though tempting, and tried to call a taxi. No luck. I called the hotel to help me out and took the most expensive cab ride of the trip at SAR 100 or approx $27.
I had dinner by the pool. The match playing on the big screen and the excited tables around me didn’t vibe and I requested my Umm Ali bread pudding to be delivered to my room. The moment you go off script, there’s confusion. The dessert arrived after couple of calls made to the front desk. It was delivered by the young lady who took the order.
Day 4
Monday was departure day.
Flights are limited in and out of AlUla and I took the best option at 1pm, that flew to Riyadh. I took a connecting flight to Dubai, adding 6.5hrs of travel time.
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