SAUDI ARABIA

DAY 1 | 4 November 2022: DEPARTURE

​

Recommended flight: Bangkok-Jeddah-Riyadh 23:30-08:35 (+1 day) SV845/1020 Saudia (Flight is subject to change)

​

​

​

DAY 2 | 5 November 2022: RIYADH (ARRIVAL City tour) (B/D)

​

Arrive, go through immigration, and transfer to the hotel for breakfast.

 

We will start our tour of mystic Riyadh by visiting the National museum which is the primary custodian of the Saudi national heritage and  culture. The Museum is a place of learning and discovery; it offers an overview to the history of Arabian civilization from Prehistory to our modern era. We continue  thereafter to the nearby Murabba Palace that is one of the historic buildings of the city. The palace was named after its square with the form of 400 by 400 meters.  We will stop then for lunch in a typical local Saudi restaurant. Afternoon we will continue our tour of mystic Riyadh by visiting the Masmak Fort and its museum  that depicts the history of the history of the conquest of Arabia by the Al-Saud family. The palace was built during the reign of Abdullah bin Rashid in the year 1895  A.D. to serve as military garrison for the Abdullah bin Rashid army. His Majesty King Abdulaziz, the father of the nation today, captured the fort in 1902 making of  this fort the birthplace of the 3rd Saudi Kingdom, the modern one we live in. We will then visit the Dira Souq famous for buying antique carpets and other useful  Saudi heritage antiques, while walking we will always smell sandal wood fragrance. We will finish our tour with a stunning viewpoint from one of the famous  landmarks of Riyadh, the Kingdom Tower and the Faisaliah Tower, both great architectural achievements. At the end of the afternoon, back to your hotel.  Dinner and overnight in Riyadh. 

 

​

DAY 3 | 6 November 2022: RIYADH TO HA’IL by TRAIN (B,D) 

 

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning we depart for Riyadh’s railway station and board the fast-new train for Ha’il. The railway link was constructed very recently  and allows us to reach Ha’il in just under 5 hours. The city of Ha’il lies at the foot of the imposing Shammar mountain range whose is name also the one of a  large northern Arabian tribe. Renowned for its hospitable people, Ha’il is traditionally the home of Saudi Arabia’s poets and writers. An interesting fact about Ha’il is  that most of the early European explorers passed by this city during the 19th century (Charles Doughty, Lady Blunt, Charles Huber, Julius Euting…). Lunch will be  served on the train. Upon arrival, we will transfer to our hotel. As it will be early in Ha’il in the early afternoon, we will visit the A’Arif Fort and the nearby heritage  museum. Then we will have a walk at the traditional market where we will find the local delicacies. We will pass also by the Ha’il Regional Museum, and if it is  open, we will drop there to admire its collections. Dinner and Overnight in Ha’il. 

 

​

DAY 4 | 7 November 2022: HA’IL – AL ULA (B,D) 

 

Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to visit Al-Ula is an ancient oasis that is inhabited for the last 7000 years as testify ancient carvings in and around the oasis. During  the 1st millennium BCE the city of Dedan develops thanks to its strategic location on the frankincense trade road to become one of the oldest Arabian kingdoms  that ruled over most of what is today Tabuk and Madinah provinces. During the 1st century BCE the Nabatean people coming from Petra settled 30 kilometers  north of Dedan in Al-Hijr where they built 94 monumental tombs similar to the ones they dug in Petra. We will start our exciting day with the visit of two ancient  carving sites in Al-Ula, then will pass by the ancient city of Dedan that was an important oasis on the frankincense trade route between Southern Arabia and the  Mediterranean World. We continue then to the Old city of Al-Ula that became at the beginning of the Islamic era an important staging post along the pilgrimage  route to Mecca. We will lunch en route then visit the ancient sites of Ekma and Abu ‘Aoud where the people of the oasis wrote texts in ancient scripts that we will  decipher for you. At the end of the afternoon, drive to the hotel, dinner & accommodation in Al-Ula. 

 

​

DAY 5 | 8 November 2022: AL ULA – MADA’IN SALEH – MEDINA (B,D) 

 

Breakfast at the hotel. Today we will start our journey with the visit of the famous Hegra (Madain Saleh) which is the first site of Saudi Arabia that was listed as  UNESCO World Heritage site. Madain Saleh, whose original name was Al-Hijr or Hegra in Greek, is the southernmost important city of the Nabatean Kingdom  that flourished thanks to the caravan trade between the 2nd century BCE until the Roman conquest in 106 CE. It is the second richest Nabatean city in terms of  monumental tombs with 94 decorated funeral monuments including some of the most vibrant and well conserved architectural prowess of the Nabateans builders.  We will lead you through this fascinating site and reveal to you the secrets of its tombs, ancient inscriptions, stone structures, and many others. We will then visit  Jebel Al-Fil for a relaxing time next to the “Elephant rock”. Then we depart to the holy city of Madinah that we will reach after 3 hours. At the end of the day, arrive  in the hotel, check in and overnight in Madinah.  

 

​
 

DAY 6 | 9 November 2022: MEDINA to JEDDAH (B,D) 

 

Breakfast at the hotel. Morning half day Medina visit. Considered one of the three holiest cities in Islam, Madinah is special to Muslims because it's where Prophet  Muhammad (SAW) was given refuge after his exile from Makkah. Originally known as Yathrib, Madinah was once an oasis city with a history that dates back to the  6th century BCE. Muslims have always had a special attachment to this city because it is where the Prophet lived, fought crucial battles, built his famous mosque  and also where he was finally laid to rest. It is centered around the Prophet's Mosque and other monuments that attract pilgrims from all over the world. During the  day we will pass by Al Madinah Province, Al Masjid an Nabawi, Jannatul Baqi, Grave of Hamzah, Al Noor Mall, Rashed Mall, Dar Al Madinah Museum, Al-Madina  Museum, Masjid Al Ghamamah, Abu Bakar Masjed’ Lunch in the city. Departure to Jeddah that we will reach after 4 hours. On arrival, check in in hotel Dinner and  overnight in Jeddah. 

 

​

DAY 7 | 10 November 2022: JEDDAH (B, D) 

​

Breakfast at your hotel. From the 7th century CE Jeddah was established as a major port for Indian Ocean trade routes, channeling goods to Mecca. It was also  the gateway for Muslim pilgrims to Mecca who arrived by sea. We will start our tour by visiting the Old Jeddah called Al-Balad which was listed as UNESCO World  Heritage Site in 2014. This walk tour of the old Town will take you along the narrow streets whose shade is provided by elegant tower houses made with coral  stone and decorated by large wooden structures called Roshan. Most of those houses were built in the late 19th century but some of them are more than 400  years old. There we will visit the Bait Nassif (outside), one of the prominent renovated houses of the old city which dates back to the mid 1800's, the Old Market  and the old Mosque. We will end our tour driving towards the Jeddah Corniche which is the 30 km coastal resort area of the city of Jeddah. We will pass by the Al  Rahmah Mosque also known as the floating mosque since it is built on piles above the water. Located along the Red Sea, the corniche features a coastal road,  recreation areas, pavilions and large-scale civic sculptures as well as King Fahd's Fountain, the highest fountain in the world. Dinner and overnight in Jeddah. 

 

​

DAY 8 | 11 November 2022: FREE DAY (B) 

 

Free day (optional special program/ please ask our team)

 

Overnight in Jeddah

 

​

DAY 9 | 12 November 2022: DEPATURE

 

Recommended flight: Jeddah-Riyadh-Bangkok 01:25-15:00 SV846 Saudia (Flight is subject to change)

 

 

------------------------------

 

 

 

HOTELS INCLUDED:

​

• Riyadh - Ibis Olaya 

• Ha’il - Millennium 

• Al Ula - Sahary Resort 

• Medina - Elaf Taiba 

• Jeddah - Ibis 

​

​

INCLUDES:

 

• Accommodation as mentioned

• Meals as mentioned

• Transportation and airport transfers

• Local English-speaking guide

• Expedition leader from TEAM SAGA

• Travel insurance with 500,000 THB coverage (only for fly in/out of Thailand)

 

 

EXCLUDES:

​

• Entry visa (480 SAR or 5,000 THB)

• International flights to Riyadh and from Jeddah (31,000-33,000 THB)

• Personal expenses on free day

• Beverages and meals not specified in the program

• PCR test if needed

​

*Our team will be happy to assist you with preparing for your visa and booking international flights

​

​

​

------------------------------

​

​

​

Saga club discount: You are automatically offered our club membership after your first expedition. The following discount applies: 3% on 2nd trip, 5% on 3rd trip, 7% on 4th trip or 10% all after. This cannot be combined with the early bird discount. 

 

Payment & Deposit:

​

• 50% deposit payment is required for reserving your spots

• Balance payment is due 60 days before the departure date. Failure to do so will result in cancellation of booking.

• If the booking is made within 60 days of departure date, full payment is required. 

 

Cancellation policy:

​

• In any case of cancellation, 20% of the deposit payment is refundable or the whole amount can be kept as credits for any other Saga expeditions within 2 years of the cancellation date. 

• In any case of cancellation, if full payment is made, a full refund will be issued minus a 10% cancellation fee and any cost to the third parties.

• If the cancellation is due to COVID19, a full refund will be issued minus any cost incurred. We always attempt to maximize the refund for our client’s benefit! 

• In the event of premature departure during the expedition for any reason, no refund will be issued.

• Saga Expeditions is not responsible for any cancellations or changes in flights and visas. Please have your travel insurance for entire duration of your trip

 

Important note:

​

All of our expeditions take you through one of the most challenging roads in the world. While the Saga team endeavors to make the itinerary as accurate as possible, it should be considered as an approximate agenda of activities rather than a rigid schedule. Trip itineraries are subject to last-minute, and on-the-ground revision due to weather, road conditions, government and local restrictions, and other reasons beyond our control. Note that the order of visits and excursions can be modified according to local conditions (i.e. state of roads, market days etc.). If some visits and/or tours could not be done due to external conditions, they will be replaced when possible. Your safety is always our first priority!