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Saudi Arabia, 13 Days · Tailor-made by car
From Damman to Jeddah
Fusion of tradition and modernity
Drive across this fascinating and off-the-beaten-track destination to discover amazing natural, archaeological and historical treasures. Get to enjoy many of the country's stunning attractions such as the mystical and bustling capital Riyadh, the heritage village of Ushaiqer with its impressive traditional Najdi architecture, the maze-like souks of Buraydah, the sophisticated rock art of Jubbah, the incredible sculpted temple of Mada'in Saleh, the city of Al-Ula (also known as the Petra of the South), the holy city of Medina, and the bustling city of Jeddah.
What are you waiting for?
Departure date
Departures from December 2024 till November 2025
From
Dublin, Knock, Galway, Donegal, Cork, Kerry county...
Travel details
City of origin - Damman - Dammam
Departure with destination Damman. Arrival and rental car pick-up at the Budget offices at the airport. Along with the keys, you'll also be given a road atlas. Rest of the day free. Accommodation.
Dammam
Breakfast. Following the road atlas, a photo stop is recommended at the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (also known as Ithra), which was built by Saudi Aramco and inaugurated by King Salman bin Abdulaziz on 1 December 2016. Then you can visit the Alfan Sharqy Bayoniya urban art exhibition, Al Khobar. The historic neighbourhood of Bayoniya received a makeover in 2018, courtesy of a clique of young Saudi artists who turned its streets into a giant canvas, complete with a whole load of graffiti. The next visit is to the Taybeen Museum, a 300 m2 museum in Al Khobar that stems from Majid Al Ghamdi's drive to preserve the ancient finds of his youth, a pastime that became a collection of retro toys, board games and video games, posters, televisions, cameras, and branded food and drink packaging. The next stop should be the Heritage Village in Damman. Part museum, part restaurant, it offers visitors a glimpse into a simpler life. The five-storey building houses a museum, showcasing treasures of jewellery, manuscripts, fabrics and other artifacts, and a small market full of handicrafts where Arab perfumes, incense, baskets woven from palm leaves, and tapestries are sold. But the biggest attraction for many is the restaurant serving delicious local food. Accommodation.
Dammam - Al Uqayr - Al-Hofuf (150 km)
Breakfast. Departure by road to the modern capital of the eastern province. You can start off in the direction of the Arabian Sea at the ancient port of Al Uqayr on the beautiful Half Moon Bay. This ancient port, which included administrative buildings, a fort and a market, was built
by the Ottomans in the seventeenth century and was partially redeveloped recently. You can then continue to the Al-Ahsa Desert, starting at a breathtaking viewpoint on one of the lakes located a few kilometres east of Al-Hofuf that reveal the vast water resources of the Al-Ahsa oasis. One of them is called Yellow Lake because of the colour of the surrounding dunes. This landscape made of water-rich flat terrain among dunes is typical of the Eastern Province and is known as sabkha. It's particularly impressive as 500 kilometres to the south is the world's most extensive sand dune desert known as Rub' al Khali. You'll get to drive through dunes and sabkhas. Arrival at Al Hofuf, one of the world's leading producers of dates. Accommodation.
Al-Hofuf - Al-Ahsa - Riyadh (326 km)
Breakfast. Today will take you to Al-Hofuf, which is the main city of Al-Ahsa, a region in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Al-Ahsa is the largest oasis in the world with an area of around 85.4 km2, home to more than 2.5 million palm trees that feed on a huge underground aquifer that allows year-round agriculture in an otherwise desert region. Al-Ahsa also harbours an ancient secret: the Greek geographer Strabo described it as an ancient Arab kingdom whose capital
Gerrha had "fancy tools made out of gold and silver". To date, this site hasn't been found by archaeologists, but one of the candidates is the modern city of Al-Hofuf, where you can visit Fort Ibrahim and its mosque; and the Jabal al Qarah, a limestone outcrop with caves and canyons that offers views over the huge palm plantations. You can then finish at the historic Jawatha Mosque. Mid-afternoon, set off for Riyadh, the capital. Arrival and overnight stay.
Riyadh
Breakfast. Today will take you to the mystical Riyadh. Following the road atlas, we recommend visiting the National Museum, the main custodian of Saudi national heritage and culture that offers an overview of the history of Arab civilisation from prehistory to our modern era. Then you can visit the Murabba Palace, which is one of the city's historic buildings. In the afternoon, grab the opportunity to discover other landmarks of Riyadh such as the famous Kingdom Tower, the Faisaliah Hotel, the Masmak Fort (one of the most important monuments in the country that marks the beginning of the modern history of Saudi Arabia), and the Deerah Souq, famous for its carpets and other antiques. Accommodation.
Riyadh - Ushaiqer - Buraydah (360 km)
Breakfast. Today we recommend starting the day early and enjoying an authentic Saudi experience. Departure by road to the heritage village of Ushaiqer, one of the oldest settlements in the region with impressive traditional Najdi architecture. En route, you'll pass through the villages of Al Mithnab, Al Ghat and Al Khabra, almost perfect examples of traditional fortified settlements. In Unaizah, about 30 minutes from Buraydah, you can visit Al Bassam Heritage House, which was built in 1955 using traditional Nadji ventilation and lighting techniques and covers 3,500 square metres. Inside you can see ancient crafts, traditional foods, folk tales, poems, and ancient
history. Arrival in Buraydah where you can stroll through the delicious date market and through The Women's Souq and the Al Jerredah Souq. Accommodation.
Buraydah - Ha'il (280 km)
Breakfast. In the morning, on the outskirts of Buraydah, you can visit the camel market, the largest in the world where thousands of camels, goats and sheep are traded every day. Departure by road to Ha'il passing from the sedimentary lands of Qassim with sand dunes and oases full of palm trees to the imposing granite formations of Jebel Aja that border the city of Hail. En route, you can stop off at Fayd, a pre-Islamic city that used to be on the old caravanserai routes. Also en route, you'll cross Saudi Arabia's easternmost lava fields known as Harrat Al-Hutaymah. Arrival and overnight stay.
Ha'il - Jubbah - Al-Ula (585 km)
Breakfast. Departure by road to Jubbah, a city located on an ancient lake with several archaeological sites of human settlements dating back to the Middle Paleolithic. Jubbah is surrounded by large sandstone outcrops filled with ancient inscriptions and petroglyphs, including carvings made by locals of aurochs, cheetahs, lions, etc., who lived in this desert area during the last wet period millennia ago. To this day, you can still see these drawings in several sandstone outcrops such as the Jebel Umm Sanman, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. En route, you'll pass through the Nefud Al Kabir Desert en route to Ha'il. The name of this desert literally means "great expanse of sand dunes" (it's 290 kilometres long and 225 kilometres wide, with an area of 103,600 square kilometres). Arrival in the famous area of Al-Ula. Accommodation.
Al-Ula
Breakfast. Take advantage of the day to visit two traditional rock carving sites in Al-Ula, an ancient oasis that has been inhabited for the last seven thousand years. Following the road atlas, you'll reach the ancient city of Al-Ula before leaving for Dedan, which developed in the first millennium BC thanks to its strategic location on the incense trade route, governing most of what are now the provinces of Tabuk and Medina. We then recommend visiting the archaeological sites of Ekma and Abu 'Aoud before arriving in Harrat Uwayrid for incredible views. Accommodation.
Al-Ula - Mada'in Saleh - Mdina
Breakfast. Today you'll visit the famous city of Mada'in Saleh (or Hegra in Greek), the first place in Saudi Arabia to be recognised by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Also known as the "Petra of the South", Mada'in Saleh is the second richest Nabataean city in terms of monumental tombs, with 94 decorated funerary monuments including some of the most vibrant and best-preserved architectural skills of the Nabataean builders. Departure to the holy city of Medina. Arrival and overnight stay.
Mdina - Jeddah (420 km)
Breakfast. Today you can take a half-day tour of Medina, one of the three holiest cities in Islam. Medina is special to Muslims because it's where the Prophet Muhammad received refuge after his exile from Mecca. Muslims have always had a special attachment to this city because it's where the Prophet lived, fought crucial battles, built his famous mosque, and also where he was eventually buried. It is centred around the Prophet's Mosque and other monuments that attract pilgrims from all over the world. You can spend the day in the province of Medina, Al Masjid an Nabawi, Jannatul Baqi, Hamzah Tomb, Al Noor Mall, Rashed Mall, Dar Al Medina Museum, the Al-Madina Museum, Masjid Al Ghamamah, and Abu Bakar Masjed. Afterwards, departure to Jeddah. Arrival and overnight stay.
Jeddah
Breakfast. Today, you'll get to explore the ever-vibrant Jeddah, one of the country's most fascinating cities. Following the road atlas, you can enjoy a wonderful stroll through Al-Balad, the old part of the city, touring the lesser-known corners, such as the hidden galleries, the secret gems of the old market, and local eateries frequented exclusively by locals. You'll also be able to see Beit Nassif, one of the prominent renovated structures of the old city dating back to the mid-nineteenth century. This five-storey building offers the unique opportunity to experience the mix between traditional and modern architecture. You can also visit the old market and the former mosque. And the Al Rahmah Mosque, known as the Floating Mosque, the only domed architectural wonder that literally sits above the sea and symbolises the ancient storm of Jeddah in the modern era. Perched in an enviable location, the mosque's courtyard offers unobstructed views of the Red Sea. We recommend finishing the tour with the Jeddah Corniche, which is the city's 30-kilometre-long coastal area with recreation areas, pavilions and large-scale civic sculptures, as well as King Fahd's Fountain, the highest in the world. Return to hotel. Accommodation.
Jeddah - City of origin
Breakfast. Arrival at the airport with enough time to drop off your rental car. Flight with destination the city of origin. Arrival. End of the trip and our services.
Your trip includes
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Return flight.
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Overnight stay in the listed hotels, or similar.
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Assistant at destination throughout the tour.
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Road atlas.
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Local taxes.
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Diet: 12 breakfasts.
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Car rental for 13 days, Toyota Corolla or similar, with mileage limited to 300 km/day and CDW insurance.
Your trip doesn't include
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Petrol costs and tolls.
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Visits and tickets.
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Any other service not previously mentioned as included.
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Insolvency protection.
Destinations Visited
Expected Hotels (or similar)
In this section you will find a selection of hotels according to the category specified in the itinerary.
Category A
Wyndham Garden Dammam
21St Street, Al Adama District, Damman
Important remarks
- You may be denied entry in Saudi Arabia by the authorities if your passport contains an entry or exit stamp from Israel.
- Saudi Arabia is a Muslim country and the month of Ramadan is of major significance to its residents. During Ramadan, entertainment and alcohol will be restricted in most of the country. The sale of alcohol will be restricted in many places, although some establishments will offer alcohol for sale to tourists. During this period, local businesses may also have shorter opening hours.
- Check-in time at the hotel on the day of arrival depends on each establishment, but in no case will it be before 3:00 p.m., unless otherwise indicated.
- To pick up your rental car, you'll need a valid driver's licence more than one year old, a passport, and a credit (not debit) card in the name of the person who made the booking, who must also be the named driver of the vehicle.
- The minimum age of the driver must be 21.
- The order of the itinerary may be altered for logistical reasons, without prior notice, but no scheduled trips will be cancelled (except in the case that adverse weather conditions prevent its realisation).
- A credit card is considered a guarantee, so sometimes you will need one for check-in at hotels.
- Prices are calculated based on admission fees to the sights as of the date of publication. If there is an increase in these prices, you will be promptly informed.
- If you are a person with reduced mobility, please contact us to confirm the suitability of the trip.
- Consult the necessary documentation to enter the destinations visited and for transit in the countries where air stopovers are made.