Establishing Saudi Arabia’s position as a booming tourist spot, the country’s northwestern region of AlUla won three prestigious prizes at the World Travel Awards 2025, including the Middle East’s Leading Cultural Tourism Project 2025, the Middle East’s Leading Festival and Event Destination 2025, and Saudi Arabia’s Leading Cultural Tourism Project 2025.
While this isn’t the first time the destination is bagging these awards - it won all three in 2024 and one in 2023 - the oasis city has been a witness to long human civilisation, from the Neolithic to the Roman and Ottoman eras.
The ancient oasis city that lies in the Medina Province of Saudi Arabia holds prominence in the history of Islam, having been home to several pre-Islamic Semitic civilizations. It was once an active hub along the incense trade route, connecting India and the Persian Gulf to the Levant and Europe.
The marvel of AlUla lies in its desert landscape, giant rock bodies, and echoes of past civilisations.
The region has three key sites, the Jabal Ikmah, Abu Ud, and Al Aqra’a Mountain, each of which bears testimony to exchanges among the Nabataeans, the Lihyanites, and other ancient civilizations, according to UNESCO. Jabal Ikmah is called an ‘open-air library’ with inscriptions that reference names, communities, social structures, religious rituals, burial customs, and agricultural practices.
The region also has valuable artifacts, including ancient stone inscriptions, which can help understand the development of the Arabic language. The award-winning city also has the Elephant Rock, locally known as Jabal Al-Fil. It is a natural rock formation measuring 52 metres in height. After being formed of sandstone eroded by wind, rain, and sand for a long period, the rock took on a shape that resembles that of an elephant.
Another famous site within AlUla is the Old Town, locally called al-Dirah, which lies close to the region’s palm grove and 22 kilometres from Hegra. Being filled with a dense cluster of stone and mudbrick houses, it contains mosques, markets, and ancient heritage buildings. It houses more than 900 mud-brick homes while also forming a dense maze with narrow streets and covered alleys. The town is now under restoration.
AlUla also has the Hijr Fort, which is a historical fortress that serves as a key station for those who want to visit Hegra. It was built during the time of the Abbasid Caliphate to function as a rest stop for pilgrims who travelled from the Levant. The Hijr Fort consists of the Levantine Hajj Route Museum, set up by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage.
