Al Qassim

Sandwiched between Riyadh and Hail, on the central plain of Najd, the fertile province of Al Qassim is one of the most traditional and authentic regions of Arabia. To Saudis, Al Qassim is indelibly associated with the legendary love story of Antarah Bin Shaddad and his cousin Abla Bint Malik – an Arabian Romeo & Juliet – as well as being the home to both the world’s largest date festival and the vast Buraidah camel market.

The theatre of the Buraidah camel market (6 days a week) and the Buraidah Date Festival (mid-Aug to mid-September) make a visit to Al Qassim a cultural experience that is almost without parallel. Indeed, for many visitors, Al Qassim’s camel market and date festival are considered to be the liveliest and most colourful spectacles in the Kingdom. At the camel market, some 700 animals are traded on a daily basis (swelling to two thousand animals on Saturdays), vendors and buyers throng the area, and dealers attract eager huddles of merchants as they auction camels that can reach as much as one million US$, and baby camels (called ga’oud) charm the hearts of all who spy them.

While at the 35-day economic carnival that is the annual Buraidah Date Festival, farmers and traders offer more than 45 varieties of Qassimi dates for sale – the produce of 8 million date palms – amidst an atmosphere of incredible excitement. There is nothing quite like it!

Visitors to Al Qassim will also be drawn to its fine traditional mudbrick architecture. The beautifully restored Souq Musawkaf in Unaizah is one of the best examples and comes into its own in the evenings when locals come to relax, drink coffee and socialise. Al Mithnab and Al Khabra both present almost complete examples of traditional fortified villages, while nearby in Al Bukayriyah, vast blackberries are grown in the desert, and the visitor can explore historic castles amongst the date palms and see a working ‘Sawane’ camel-drawn well.