AlUla tips

Saudi Arabia has launched a global brand campaign for its cultural tourism site AlUla, home to ancient ruins and a growing list of luxury hotels. The “Forever Revitalising” campaign has been produced in six languages with events in Dubai, London, New York, Paris, Shanghai, and Mumbai.

AlUla’s growing reputation as the home of diverse and exciting heritage sports from across the region and beyond will be further cemented when the city hosts two of the sector’s newest and most high-profile contests – the Arab Cup for Camel Racing and the World Championship for International Camel Endurance.

Following the United Nations declaration of the first International Day of the Arabian Leopard, on 10 February the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) continues to expand its long-term mission to safeguard the ‘Critically Endangered’ Big Cat species from the physical world into the virtual.

As part of its goal to conserve and celebrate traditional heritage sports that have deep roots in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the region, and further afield, the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) will host the first-ever AlUla Falcon Cup. The landmark sporting event, taking place at AlUla’s Mughayra Heritage Sports Village from December 28th to January 5th, will promote the rich history, carefully practiced skills, and important traditions of falconry to a global audience of visiting falconers and tourists, as well as members of the AlUla community.

Marriott continues to be a go-to choice for Saudi Arabia when it comes to operators for hotels within the giga-project portfolio. The U.S. hotel giant will be involved in every government-backed tourism project – the latest is an AlUla hotel.

Some call him a genius, others a mad scientist. But mostly, he is one of the world's most revered and respected architects and environmental designers. The first time I met Eduardo Neira (known to most as Roth), we were at his compound deep in the jungle of Tulum, Mexico. He entered the room barefoot, wearing all-white flowing attire adorned by numerous large necklaces. He is was a soft-spoken, brilliant man who immediately lit up the room, and I was transfixed.

Visually, parts of AlUla feel like the set design for Star Wars: A New Hope thanks to an expanse of beige-colored desert mountain ranges in each direction. On a recent visit, myself and a group of travelers joked that we half-expected Jawas and Jedis to appear from behind a 12-story chunk of aeon-old sandstone rock.

If you know someone who’s been to Saudi Arabia, chances are they visited AlUla. There’s a good reason for that. Located in the Medina province in northwest Saudi Arabia, AlUla is defined by its almost surreal landscape of canyons, wadis (dry valleys), sandstone cliffs, and ancient Arabic rock dwellings and tombs that trace the 7,000-year history of people living in the region. It’s also the home of Hegra, the country’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site, a city built by the Nabataeans – the same civilization that built Petra – over 2,000 years ago. Thanks to this concentration of geographic and historical wonders, it’s no surprise that AlUla has become the centerpiece of Saudi Arabia’s burgeoning tourism push.