- DAY 1: TABUK- ( ARRIVAL )
Arrival at TABUK airport. Meet & greet by our representative. Transfer to your hotel by air-conditioned vehicle. Check-in & Overnight in Tabuk
- DAY 2: TABUK – NEOM – TABUK
Breakfast at the hotel. Today we are in the area where the construction of a futuristic city called Neom is being ongoing. Its name stands for “New Future” (“Neo” for “New” and “Mustaqbal” which means “Future” in Arabic) highlighting the uniqueness of the vision of this project. The area of Neom corresponds to the west shore of Tabuk Province that we will explore today, starting with the archeological site of Madyan, an ancient city quoted in both the Coran and the Bible. This place was occupied among others by the Nabateans who built some monumental tombs known by locals as the “caves of the Prophet Shuwayb” (Mughayr Shuwayb). From there we will travel in the footsteps of the Prophet Moses as his story told in both the Coran and Bible says that we lived in Madyan for 10 years. We will visit the Wells of Moses and the impressive Valley of Moses (also known as Tayeb Ism), all these places offering a wonderful sight on the Sinai Mountain on the other side of the Gulf of Aqaba. At the end of the afternoon, we will drive back to our hotel in Tabuk. Dinner & Overnight in Tabuk.
Breakfast at the hotel. Early departure to AL ULA. After 3 hours of straight transfer, we reach Al-Ula which is an ancient oasis that is inhabited for the last 7000 years. During the 1st millennium BCE, the city of Dedan develops thanks to its strategic location on the frankincense trade road to become one of the oldest Arabian kingdoms that ruled over most of what is today Tabuk and Madinah provinces. During the 1st century BCE, the Nabatean people coming from Petra settled 30 kilometers north of Dedan in Al-Hijr where they built 94 monumental tombs similar to the ones they dug in Petra. Lunch on arrival. We will start our tour with the visit of two ancient carving sites in AlUla, then will pass by the ancient city of Dedan which was an important oasis on the frankincense trade route. We continue then to the Old City of Al-Ula that became at the beginning of the Islamic era an important staging post along the pilgrimage route to Mecca. Then we will visit the ancient sites of Ekma and Abu ‘Aoud where the people of the oasis wrote texts in ancient scripts that we will decipher for you. We will finish this special day on top of the Harrat Al-Uwayrid for an amazing viewpoint of the oasis of Al-Ula. At the end of the afternoon, drive to hotel, dinner & accommodation in Al-Ula.
- DAY 4: Hegra, The Iconic Archeological Gem of Arabia: HEGRA
Breakfast at the hotel. Today we will start our journey with the visit of the famous Hegra (Madain Saleh) which is the first site of Saudi Arabia that was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Madain Saleh, whose original name was Al-Hijr or Hegra in Greek, is the southernmost important city of the Nabatean Kingdom that flourished thanks to the caravan trade between the 2nd century BCE until the Roman conquest in 106 CE. It is the second richest Nabatean city in terms of monumental tombs with 94 decorated funeral monuments including some of the most vibrant and well conserved architectural prowess of the Nabatean builders. We will lead you through this fascinating site and reveal to you the secrets of its tombs, ancient inscriptions, stone structures, and many others. Our visit will be followed by lunch before we head towards Jibal Al-Rukkab & Leopard trail. We will then visit Jebel Al-Fil for a relaxing time next to the “Elephant rock”. At the end of the day, we go back to our hotel and enjoy dinner. Overnight in Al-Ula.
Breakfast at the hotel. Depending on our flight departure time, transfer to TABUK airport for departure
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