The Saudi sites you must see: Top places to visit

UNEXPLORED FRONTIER: Traditional houses etched on mountainsides form part of the enchanting scenery in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern region. Saudi Arabia is dubbed as tourism’s last unexplored frontier. The Kingdom has now thrown open its doors to the world. With its dramatic landscapes and varied topography, Saudi Arabia remains one of the last destinations largely untouched by mass tourism. All that is about to change. The tourism drive forms an integral part of Vision 2030 strategy to diversify economy

HISTORIC CITY: The old houses of historic Jeddah, a port city by the Red Sea. The foundation of the city of Jeddah is dated back to around 3,000 years, when groups of fishermen used to settle in it after their fishing trips.

UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE: The old part of the port city of Jeddah, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in western Saudi Arabia. These old houses form a prominent part of Al Balad, which can be literally translated as “The City”. It features historical landmarks such as the Old Jeddah Wall built to protect the old city, ancient mosques, tower houses built in the late 19th century by wealthy merchants, lively traditional souqs and narrow, winding alleys. But with the development of Jeddah, this heritage area is also changing.

ORNATE: Wooden lattices used as wind breakers adorn every room in the old houses in Historic Jeddah. Centuries-old houses in Jeddah's Al Balad district rise to a height of more than 30 metres, built based on local designs and architectural style. They serve as an authentic and genuine form of art, built using carefully-quarried rocks from the nearby Arba’een Lake. The rocks were reshaped using hand tools and set according to their sizes along the wooden beams obtained from the surrounding areas. The builders used clay dug out from the bottom of Bahr Al-teen Lake to bind the rocks. This part of Old Jeddah is now considered a Unesco historic site.

OLD AND NEW: The new district of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia's second-biggest city.

OLD HOUSES IN TRADING PORT: Alleyway in Jeddah's old Ballad District shows the close-knit nature of the society once upon a time. Jeddah played a prominent role as a trading port, and the cross-cultural exchange between the trading Middle-Eastern, Asian and European nations enriched the arts and architecture of Hejaz (region in the west of Saudi Arabia). Those ageless houses in Jeddah's old commercial district are now part of the UNESCO list of heritage sites. Al Balad represents the original one square kilometre from which modern Jeddah developed.

OLD QUARTER: A man shows the door of a traditional old building in Asir Province, Saudi Arabia. Asir Province launched the Asir Summer 2020 Festival, which includes many summer programmes and activities in all cities and governorates of the Asir region. This came during the inauguration of Khairat Asir (Asir Bounties).

UP ABOVE THE CLOUDS: A view from Al Sahab Park, one of the most-visited tourist and amusement parks in the city of Abha. It is about 15 kilometers away from Mt. Soudah, Saudi Arabia's tallest peak, which takes visitors up above the clouds and down to the Sarawat Valley. The city has cable car which offers rides, but is not for the fainthearted.

SAUDI ARABIA'S TOURISM GEM: Asir is considered one of the the kingdom’s top tourist destinations, in the country’s southwest region, with a rich offering and nature and heritage sites. Scenic cable car rides in Saudi's Asir region offer visitors unbeatable views, but also the chance to discover destinations such as the mysterious hanging village of Al Habala. Twitter / @VisitSaudiNow

HOSTING MILLIONS EACH YEAR: Muslim pilgrims wear face masks and keep social distance as they perform "Tawaf" around Kaaba, in Mecca. Now, the kingdom also aims to showcase its culture, ecology and deserts so that tourists can see the real Saudi Arabia. Its central, western and eastern regions offer unique experiences to visitors.

BIRD'S EYE VIEW: A view of Abha City, known for its cooler clime, natural beauty as well as historical, social and cultural sites. The city offers daily city tours (about 45 minutes) that take visitors on a journey of discovery around the most prominent cultural, archaeological and tourist attractions in the capital of the Asir region, via the tourist buses. In August, the Council of Tourism Development kicked off tour bus operations as part of the activities of Abha Festival.

ANTIQUITIES SITE: Visitors in front of Qasr Ak Farid tomb in Madain Saleh, an antiquities sit in Al Ula, north-western Saudi Arabia.

UNESCO SITE: Madain Saleh, a stunning archaeological site in the area of Al Ula in north-western Saudi Arabia, was the first site in Saudi Arabia to be recognised by Unesco and a location often compared to Jordan’s Petra. Al Ula is front and centre of the drive to promote history and culture-based tourism in Saudi Arabia. A majority of the remains here date back from the Nabatean kingdom.

CAFE CULTURE: A woman flashes the V sign at a cafe in a shopping mall in the capital Riyadh.

Stage 3 of the Dakkar Rally in Neom, Saudi Arabia. Photo shows Bahrain JCW X-Raid Team's Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz during the rally's stage 3, taken on January 7, 2020.

EXPLORE ABHA: The “High City” is one of the latest tourism projects in Abha. It overlooks Tihama Asir in the southeast, and the city of Abha in the northwest, and tourist destinations as well as restaurants, cafes, resorts, hotels and residential villas that meet all the visitors’ needs.

WINTER WONDERLAND: The majestic mountains in southern Saudi Arabia can turn into a winter wonderland. This photo was published on April 3, 2019 by the official Saudi Press Agency, showing snowfall blanketing the picturesque Asir region, including the main city of Abha, in white.

SUMMER CAPITAL: Asir is the summer capital of Saudi Arabia. Geographically, the Asir Region is situated on a high plateau that receives more rainfall than the rest of the country and contains the country's highest peaks — which rise to almost 3,000 metres (9,800 ft) at Jabal Sawda near Abha.

TERRACED FARMS in ABHA, SAUDI ARABIAl Abha is one of the most beautiful tourist destinations in Saudi Arabia. Temperatures can be extreme. While afternoon temperatures can hover above 30°C, mornings can be extremely frosty and fog can curb visibility significantly. SPA

TOURISM PUSH: The Kingdom Tower in Riyadh. Saudi Arabia has announced this September that it will invest $810 billion (Dh2.97 trillion) worth of mega projects to help boost the tourism sector over the next 10 years. Developed by the Public Investment Fund, the tourism projects will spread over 64,634 square kilometres, according to the Ministry of Tourism.

The King Abdullah Financial District, north of Riyadh. Tourism is an important part of Saudi’s economic diversification plans. The Kingdom is preparing for a quick rebound in tourism and hasn’t revised its visitor targets for 2021 despite the coronavirus pandemic, Tourism Minister Ahmed Al-Khateeb said. As the government prepares to reopen its borders to foreign tourists in January, the kingdom is using its presidency of the Group-of-20 biggest economies to facilitate a resumption of global travel, Al-Khateeb said in an interview Saturday.

MILLENNIAL FOOTPRINTS: Tourists check out human and animal footprints dating back 120,000 years found recently in the province of Tabuk, north-western Saudi Arabia. The traces of the footprints were discovered in an old dry lake. Around 1,200 centuries ago in what is now northern Saudi Arabia, a small band of homo sapiens stopped to drink and forage at a shallow lake that was also frequented by camels, buffalo, and elephants bigger than any species seen today. xxxxx

FUN RIDES: It's taking shape in Qiddiya City, 40km from the Saudi capital Riyadh. Saudi Arabia is set to have the 'longest, highest and fastest roller coaster' in the world. American operator Six Flags announced on Monday, August 26 2019, 12 announced record- breaking attractions are coming to Saudi including the world’s longest, tallest and fastest roller coaster ride.

ATTRACTIONS: Qiddiya will cover 32 hectares and include 28 rides and attractions across six themed lands including, The City of Thrills, Discovery Springs, Steam Town, Twilight Gardens, Valley of Fortune and Grand Exposition.

TALLEST FOUNTAIN: The King Fahd Fountain in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It is the tallest fountain in the world, reaching a height of about 312 meters (1,024 feet), thus making it taller than the Eiffel Tower (including the antenna). The second-tallest fountain is the Gateway Geyser in East St. Louis, Illinois, USA, which reaches about 192 meters (630 feet).