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Hey! 
It’s hard to end up in Al Ula “by accident.” To get here, you need to plan a small detour, or a bigger one, on purpose. That’s exactly how it was for us. We came in from Kuwait, right in the middle of our motorcycle journey from Poland to Oman, with our heads full of photos and one big question: is all the hype online actually deserved?
The hype is real. And it’s not only about the landscape, but also about how big the tourism push is here. The Royal Commission for AlUla is aiming for around 1 million visits per year by 2030. In 2024 the region had roughly 286,000 visitors, so it’s still in a phase of intense development, not a “classic place that’s already overcrowded”. Just for context, the Royal Commission is the body that leads and coordinates tourism development and the wider revitalization of the entire Al Ula region. Think of it as something much bigger than a local city office.
In this post, we’ve gathered our impressions and a few practical observations from the places we managed to visit.
And if you want the full context of our September visit and how Al Ula fit into the entire Poland–Oman route, here are two good places to start:
Did you land here first? No worries — this post is a more detailed follow-up to our time in Al Ula. In the previous one, we gathered our impressions from the places we visited, along with the day-to-day practical side: where we stayed, what food costs looked like, and what you can realistically manage without a sky-high budget 🙂
Old Town
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The Old Town in Al Ula is one of those places that shows just how well Saudi Arabia can “dust off” its history and present it in a very modern way. Just a few years ago, Al-Deira was more of a ruin slowly disappearing into the sand. Large-scale revitalization really kicked off after 2017, when the Royal Commission for AlUla was established. Market Street opened to visitors in 2021, and the area began coming back to life in the form you see today: walkable streets, lighting, restaurants, and plenty of details, all put together to feel intentional and very “premium.”
From our point of view, the place is really well maintained. You can feel the money behind it, even if it’s hard to find a public figure dedicated strictly to the Old Town itself. What is known is that the entire Journey Through Time master plan for Al Ula is valued at around 15 billion USD, and it all starts right here, in the Old Town. On site, it’s easy to see. Restored buildings, consistent aesthetics, and tourist infrastructure that clearly wasn’t done on a tight budget.
During the day it can feel quieter and noticeably hotter, especially in summer, so the place really comes alive after sunset. In the evening, the streets become much more atmospheric and noticeably busier. If you hit a day with full sun, the difference is huge. In the shade it’s pleasant, but without it the sun can very quickly drain your enthusiasm.
There’s just one thing that might sting your wallet a bit. Some of the places feel clearly aimed at wealthier visitors, and souvenir prices can either make you laugh or annoy you. Let’s not even get started on the price of fridge magnets.
What should you keep in mind when arriving here by car?
- You cannot drive into the old town itself.
- It is most convenient to leave your car in the parking lot from the north or south.
- A shuttle bus runs between the parking lots and the entrance.
- Along the Old Town runs a main road cutting through the entire Al Ula area, but there’s really no practical option to stop there “just for a moment,” so using the parking areas and the shuttle bus is still the best solution.
Oases near the Old Town
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That green patch next to the Old Town is a great contrast to all the desert scenery around. In practice, you step into a calm zone full of palm trees and a general sense of “breathing space.” It’s part of the larger Al Ula Oasis, a place with strong historical importance and one that’s now being heavily revitalized as part of the region’s development plans. Since 2021, UNESCO and the Royal Commission for AlUla have been working together to protect this heritage and “wake up” the oasis in a way that also benefits the local community.
For us, it was the perfect spot for a relaxed walk, especially when we wanted to burn off a few calories without chasing the next “must-see.” There are lots of palm trees, the paths are pleasant, and the overall vibe is much more chilled than on the main promenades.
Logistically, it works very similarly to the Old Town. It’s best to leave your car in the parking area and walk in, without trying to stop along the road that runs next to the Old Town. The oasis itself is also part of a larger regeneration axis known as the Cultural Oasis, a kind of “green lung” connecting the Old Town with Dadan and Jabal Ikmah as part of the Journey Through Time master plan.
Elephant Rock
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I won’t pretend to be modest here. This place has a special status for us, because this is exactly where I proposed to Jadzia xD And since elephants are supposed to bring good luck, the universe clearly approved the decision haha.
Geologically, it’s actually quite simple, which makes it even cooler. Jabal AlFil (that’s the official name) is a massive natural sandstone formation, shaped over years by wind and erosion into a form you just can’t ignore. You look at it once and there’s no doubt where the elephant name comes from.
It’s best to come here in the evening. The rock is illuminated after dark, the vibe turns very “desert chill”, and the place clearly comes alive in the evening. Officially, Elephant Rock is open from the afternoon until midnight, with extended hours on selected days, so the plan is pretty clear. This is meant to be an evening stop, not a quick photo in the harsh midday sun.
It looks great in real life, but phones at night often struggle to capture the texture of the rock and the whole lighting magic. If you have a proper camera with a fast lens, you can get some really nice shots here, especially shortly after sunset, when the sky still has some color left.
The logistics are dead simple. The city has set this up as a proper visitor area: a parking lot, pedestrian paths, places to sit, and food options nearby. The access road isn’t paved, but even small sedans can handle getting here without any issues.
Hegra
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If someone told us that there’s one “big” attraction in Al Ula you could skip, Hegra would definitely not be on that list. In short: it’s the most important Nabataean site in Saudi Arabia and also the country’s first UNESCO World Heritage site. The tombs are exceptionally well preserved, and the entire complex was the second most important Nabataean city after Petra in Jordan. And you can really feel that same architectural “family resemblance” here, just on a different scale and set in a different landscape.
In practice, you’re looking at monumental tombs carved into sandstone, mostly dating from the 1st century BCE and the 1st century CE. At first glance, you might think these are just random rocks with cool shapes marked on a map, but that’s not the case at all. These are very concrete stories carved into façades, inscriptions, and the overall layout of the necropolis. UNESCO also highlights the many inscriptions and traces of earlier cultures, so there’s much more to “read” here than it might seem at first sight.
How does everything work here in terms of organization?
And here is an important practical detail, because it is easy to be surprised.
You don’t enter Hegra on your own and wander around freely. Visits are organized as guided tours, most often by bus. The cheapest and most basic option starts at 95 SAR, and the whole experience takes around two and a half hours, with multiple stops to get on and off. A local guide leads the narration in English and Arabic, depending on the group. Booking in advance is strongly recommended.
And that actually makes sense, because the area is huge. At first, we also thought we’d just drive up and walk around on foot (seriously XD). Only once you’re there do you realize that without organized transport it would be logistically exhausting and pretty unrealistic.
To be fair and honest: at the beginning it was a bit stressful. We didn’t arrive exactly at opening time, waited a while for the staff, and then heard the classic “sorry, no spots available”. Not the nicest thing to hear when you’ve just arrived after a long drive.
Luckily, we weren’t left on our own in all of this. On site, we met a Polish couple, Łukasz and Magda, who had their own guide. When he heard our story about riding all the way here from Poland on a motorcycle, he basically took matters into his own hands and sorted out our entry. That’s how we ended up on an old-school Land Rover tour, which normally costs around 700 SAR, instead of the standard bus ticket. What started as frustration suddenly turned into a really fun day, and we’re still grateful to Łukasz and Magda for that.
What to see along the way
The bus or off-road vehicle takes you from point to point, so the visit follows a rhythm of short stops and quick jumps across a really vast area. That’s when it finally clicks why the idea of “we’ll just arrive and walk around” would be pretty unrealistic here. Along the way, you stop at several zones with tombs and rock formations, including Jabal Ahmar and Jabal AlBanat, and later you also visit Jabal Ithlib, which is a nice change of pace. It feels more like stepping into the rocks themselves rather than looking at another series of carved façades.
The most iconic stop on the route is Qasr al-Farid, and it really delivers in real life, even if you’ve already seen it in hundreds of photos. It stands alone, monumental, almost like a solitary monument carved into the sandstone. That sense of separation from the rest is exactly what makes it look even more spectacular.
If someone is looking for a single shot that sums up Hegra, this is probably it. And yes, it easily stands up to comparisons with Petra, even when the temperature is pushing 40°C.
Souvenirs? Like everywhere in Al Ula, prices can be pretty wild. It’s better to assume this is a very “premium” kind of region and that things won’t be cheap, especially at the main attractions.
Maraya
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There’s no point pretending — you simply can’t walk past Maraya without reacting. In this valley, it looks like a cosmic block that fell out of orbit and decided to reflect absolutely everything around it. And that’s exactly the point, because the name Maraya means “mirrors” or “reflections” in Arabic.
It’s a multi-purpose concert and event venue commissioned by the Royal Commission for AlUla, opened at the end of 2019. Not long after, it also picked up a Guinness World Record as the largest mirrored building in the world, with 9,740 m² of reflective “mirror skin.” In real life, this beast is seriously impressive. The structure can almost disappear into the landscape, or shine so brightly that you instinctively squint your eyes.
From an organizational point of view, there’s one important thing to know: you don’t just walk into Maraya whenever you feel like it. Access to the interior is reserved for people with tickets to specific events or for those who have booked an official tour. The guided Maraya Tour is available with standard tickets, priced at 95 SAR for adults.
Parking is available right on site, so there’s no need for any long logistical walks. But if you feel like it, the surroundings almost invite you to take a short stroll. The sand next to Maraya is so perfectly leveled that you instinctively walk carefully, like on freshly trimmed grass.
Pro tip from us: if you’re planning at least one night at a Habitas property (for example Caravan), it’s worth combining that stay with a visit to Maraya so you don’t have to pay separately for entry. Unless you’re specifically interested in seeing the inside with the full setup: the concert hall, backstage areas, seating, and the roof. In that case, buying a separate ticket makes sense.
One more important thing for setting expectations: this is not a stadium. It’s a more intimate venue wrapped in a spectacular shell. But the surroundings do half the work. The rocks, the open space, and the mirrored effect mean that even a short visit tends to stay in your memory for a long time.
Summary
Al Ula is not just the few spots we mentioned above. It’s more like a first layer, a kind of “starter”, after which you begin to understand how big and diverse the whole region really is. We’ll definitely come back for more, but in a season that’s a bit more visitor-friendly, because at 40–41°C you tend to appreciate the beauty… in small doses.
It’s absolutely beautiful here, like a second Grand Canyon. No point pretending otherwise. Honestly, it’s an amazing place. At the same time, we won’t sugarcoat it: a lot of attractions are clearly aimed at well-heeled visitors. You can feel it in the restaurants and in the souvenirs, which can come with some pretty absurd price tags. That said, it’s still very doable without earning a million dollars a month xD. You just need a sensible plan and the ability to skip every “premium” option just because it happens to be right next to you.
The biggest pro tip is actually very simple: a rental car makes all the difference here. Just driving around the region is a lot of fun and lets you see much more than only the top spots from the usual lists. We ended up covering quite a few kilometers ourselves, even though this trip was meant to be more about slowing down than getting up at dawn every day like a hike to Gubałówka.
You can also clearly see that Al Ula is in a very strong development phase. For years, the Royal Commission for AlUla has been pouring huge funds into restoration and infrastructure, with the Journey Through Time master plan at the heart of this vision, estimated at over USD 15 billion. More recently, information has surfaced about additional private-sector investment projects worth around 6 billion SAR, expected to be offered toward the end of 2025 or early 2026. You can really feel it on site. In a few years, parts of this area may look completely different.
If you need any more pro tips from us, feel free to reach out via the contact page or leave a comment — we’ll definitely get back to you quickly 😃
