Travel true. Be you!
Travel true. Be you!
Now is the best time to visit—before everyone else does!
Saudi Arabia used to be one of the most difficult places on Earth to get a visa for. Emphasis on past tense. The visa application took me less than 10 minutes, and it was a breeze to complete online.
When you apply for the visa, you also agree to respect the Saudi Arabian way of dressing modestly. That means covering your shoulders and not wearing shorts. For me as a Western woman, it was not mandatory to wear a headscarf.
However, I chose to wear one, as I didn’t see any local women showing their hair – and there weren’t really any other travellers like me around. The people I spoke to almost all asked why I was wearing one and reminded me it wasn’t mandatory. Some were curious if perhaps I shared their faith and religion.
When I explained that I simply wanted to show respect for local traditions and religion, deeper conversations followed, and people seemed to appreciate that. I encountered politeness even from those who weren’t keen to chat or learn more about me.
For me, it was a no-brainer – an exciting adventure and a privilege to travel to a place with such a rich history and traditions so different from my own upbringing. Last year, when I travelled to Oman, my flight was delayed and I missed a connection, which meant I had to transfer via Jeddah Airport. I had been worried then, as I wasn’t prepared – but the brand-new terminal and the professional staff inspired me to look into the visa situation and eventually take this intrepid journey on my own.
WiFi is available in the airport, but only if you can sign in with a Saudi Arabian mobile number. I managed to communicate through roaming with the driver my hotel had arranged for my pick-up. Later, I found out that an Uber would have been cheaper, but at the time I was glad to have secure transport. I’m not a fan of late-night arrivals in unfamiliar places, as that makes you more vulnerable – but sometimes that’s the only choice, and having arranged transport takes away a bit of the uncertainty.
The hotel breakfast was superb, and I was off to a good start! The nice woman at reception smiled (or at least I thought so, as she had friendly wrinkles around her eyes – the only part of her face I could see) when I asked about the safest way to get around. She told me to just use Ubers and not to worry – nobody would make me feel uncomfortable or harass me, and if they did, I should just threaten to call the authorities.
She was right – nobody bothered me: no inappropriate comments, no pick-up lines, no stares or anything like that. I could see that people noticed me, since I was clearly an oddity and I didn’t see other travellers like myself, but it was always in a very polite way.
Some Uber drivers were very chatty and interested to find out where I was from. They almost doubled as guides, trying to help by dropping me off at the best spot so I wouldn’t have to walk far in the scorching heat, and I had fun exploring the historic centre.
One of the Uber drivers even helped me take pictures when I asked for an unscheduled stop. Another was very patient when I wanted to buy miswak, the “natural toothbrush” – we stopped at a few places before I finally got one! Thanks, drivers!
In the summer months, the heat is unforgiving – I came to Jeddah in August after a week in Mauritius, so it would be conceivable that I was adjusted to the heat, and yet, eventually, after running around in Al Balad, I had to give up and retreat to air-conditioned surroundings. My choices were either going to a mall or sitting around in my hotel room.
I don’t love malls – I feel they’re one of those artificial surroundings that you can plonk anywhere with enough money, like hotel chains or theme parks. However, the Red Sea Mall was very refreshing, and my heat headache slowly vanished.
I used my indoor time to plan the rest of the afternoon and evening, and to get some food and water to replenish myself.
There were lots of different fast food restaurants within the mall, as well as a few more expensive places.
I tried the Saudi response to McDonald’s, KFC and co: Al Baik. Even on the plane, the little intro video about Jeddah promoted Al Baik. I’ve got to say, it’s definitely great value for money – if you like fast food, that is. I’m not a huge fan per se, but life in Saudi Arabia as a tourist isn’t exactly cheap. It’s better than the usual chains, and the service is efficient!
Within the mall, you also find an extremely well-stocked supermarket. Prices are high, but you can get perfect-looking, lush fruits and vegetables – despite essentially being in the desert. I also noticed the large collection of different cooling towels to help cope with the overwhelming temperatures.
For my next stop, I had chosen to go to the famous ‘Floating Mosque’, also known as Al Rahma Mosque (Arabic: مسجد الرحمة). Perhaps I should have also mentioned its other name, ‘Fatima Al Zahra Mosque’, to my Uber driver – I assumed that everyone would know where this beautiful place of worship is. What I hadn’t considered were the teething issues that Uber can have when you try to pick a destination in a different language.
Long story short, there is more than one Al Rahma Mosque in Jeddah. I got a little bit scared when my Uber stopped behind a very small mosque – clearly not at the Corniche – and told me we were there. Why did he stop there? I didn’t want to be left in the middle of nowhere, but luckily the driver and I were able to work out what had happened. He asked me to change the trip so he could take me to my actual destination, and by the time I arrived, the sun was beginning to set and the view was beautiful.
I asked the security guard if it was okay to walk around the mosque and take pictures. He said yes, as long as I didn’t walk inside, and he seemed surprised that I asked – but I just didn’t want to make any mistakes. There are security cameras everywhere in Saudi Arabia – just to keep you safe, as the locals assured me.
So, lesson learned: even in the age of apps, it pays to double-check your destination. But hey – at least I got there in the end, and it was absolutely worth it.
Despite the immense heat, which didn’t ease up much in the evening, I thoroughly enjoyed my walk along the Corniche after exploring the Floating Mosque.
A number of statues and art pieces line the carefully constructed walkway beside the sea. Everything is hypermodern, yet has a touch of traditional style – beautiful.
They even had little cars to rent for children, and a candy vending machine!
I would have liked to have more time to fully explore the waterfront, but I also didn’t want to walk around too long in the dark.
There’s only so much energy one can muster for turbo-sightseeing in scorching heat with high humidity – or at least that’s the case for me.
I had an early flight the next morning, but I knew I’d made the most of that day!
The Formula 1 track next to the waterfront Corniche is quite a sight, especially at night. At first, I didn’t know what I was looking at – I actually (foolishly) thought it could be the fencing of a correctional facility. Clearly, I was close to a heat stroke… lol. But then it dawned on me that it was for car racing.
However, it also means that normal traffic has to detour to get to parts of the Corniche. I found this out when I tried to get an Uber to pick me up.
I didn’t fully understand at first, but a kind park security guard helped me communicate with my Uber driver, and I was picked up safely.
King Fahd’s Fountain (Arabic: نافورة الملك فهد), also known as the Jeddah Fountain, is the largest fountain of its kind.
My kind Uber driver suggested viewing this marvel of engineering from the area opposite the fountain, rather than getting closer and not being able to see it all at once – I agreed with him. I tried in several ways to capture it in a photo, but the light conditions were challenging. I didn’t want to test the patience of my kind Uber driver, so I didn’t overdo it with multiple takes. All I can say is that it’s quite impressive when you see it with your own eyes – definitely worth a look.
