Al Ula (ٱلْعُلَا in Arabic) is an ancient Arabic oasis city located in the western mountain range of Saudi Arabia, 900 km northwest of Riad. Al Ula currently is the most important and developed tourist site in Saudi Arabia. It offers a unique combination of historical and archaeological sites and amazing scenery in a relatively small area. Al Ula is also one of the few sites in Saudi Arabia with a well developed tourist infrastructure. It has an international airport, many hotels and restaurants and tours to the area which are bookable online.
Around Al Ula there are the Jabal Ikmah area with ancient, pre-Islamic stone inscriptions with an early version of the Arabic language, the ancient city of Dadan, several tombs from the Nabatean and Dedanite periods, the UNESCO world heritage site of Hegra (also known as Mada'in Saleh), the Al Ula heritage village with ruins of the old settlement, a number of natural sights such as for instance Elephant Rock, a large rock outcrop with the shape of an elephant and the Al Ula oasis with palm trees and farm fields. The earliest historic sites date back to the 7th century BC.
How to get to Al Ula
Al Ula has an international airport with flights to Saudi cities and cities in the Middle East. It's also easily possible to reach Al Ula by car.
Accommodation
There are several hotels and other accomodation options in the medium to upper price bracket, most bookable via the international booking portals.
Hegra photo gallery  - 44 pictures of Hegra
Dadan photo gallery  - 19 pictures of Dadan
Jabal Ikmah photo gallery  - 26 pictures of Jabal Ikmah
44 photos of Hegra, the ruins of the ancient Nabatean city
19 photos of the ruins of the ancient city of Dadan
26 photos of Jabal Ikmah, a site with hundreds of pre-Arabic inscriptions carved into the rock
Urban centre photo gallery  - 22 pictures of Urban centre
Old town photo gallery  - 39 pictures of Old town
Oasis photo gallery  - 44 pictures of Oasis
Elephant rock photo gallery  - 10 pictures of Elephant rock
22 photos of the modern settlement of Al Ula
39 photos of the Al Ula heritage village, which consists of the ruins of the old settlement
44 photos of the oasis of Al Ula
10 photos of Elephant rock, a large elephant-shaped rock formation
Harrat viewpoint photo gallery  - 17 pictures of Harrat viewpoint
Scenery photo gallery  - 14 pictures of Scenery
17 photos of the Harrat viewpoint, a lookout point immediately west of Al Ula
14 photos of the desert scenery around Al Ula
Gallery with all images
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©Copyright Alfred Molon