The Ancient Kingdoms Festival in AlUla, Saudi Arabia returns for its second year November 16-December 2. The festival celebrates the three great oases of AlUla, Khaybar, and Tayma.
Located 1,100 km west of Riyadh and about 700 km north of Jeddah, AlUla is home to extraordinary natural and human heritage. The ancient city includes a lush oasis valley, towering sandstone mountains, and ancient cultural heritage sites.
The annual Ancient Kingdoms Festival highlights the three great oases of AlUla, Khaybar, and Tayma and their deep connection with the Incense Road. AlUla is believed to have had a settlement since 5000 BC.
The festival will also celebrate the landmark 15th anniversary of Hegra’s inscription as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Hegra is the most well-known and recognized site in AlUla and is Saudi Arabia’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site. Spread across 52 hectares, Hegra was the principal southern city of the Nabataean Kingdom and comprises 111 well-preserved tombs, many with elaborate facades cut out of the sandstone outcrops that surround the walled urban settlement.
Included among the historical sites is the Old Town where approximately 100 of the 900 traditional buildings made from mud brick have been restored using traditional methods, and an old school has been renovated into a centre for teaching traditional pottery and handicrafts.
“Our goal is for AlUla to be not just sustainable, but also regenerative,” said Ahmed Daoud, innovation director at the Royal Commission for AlUla. Its cultural oasis restoration project aims to reduce water consumption, improve crop productivity and enhance the aesthetic view of the oasis.
AlUla received the 2023 Middle East’s Leading Cultural Tourism Project Award at the Middle East World Travel Awards in October and was named a best tourist village in 2022 by the UNWTO.
“Our goal is for AlUla to be not just sustainable, but also regenerative,” said Ahmed Daoud, innovation director at the Royal Commission for AlUla.
During the festival, guests can join The Living Museum Tour, a new augmented reality experience where guests can access all areas ‘behind the tombs’; Hegra After Dark, a history-inspired journey that takes one on a tour of the site’s tombs; Life at Hegra Exhibition, a free-flow experience showcasing 15 finds from archaeological excavations; and Hegra Nature and Wildlife Tour, where visitors can explore the spectacular landscape and discover the geology that characterizes it.
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