Entertainment and things to do in Saudi Arabia KSA for an Expat

What will you do as an expat for entertainment in Saudi Arabia? Well you are not going to be going to the local disco, nightclub or even a quiet bar to chase women, that is for sure! Alcohol is strictly forbidden and so are public venues such as discos, there is no mixing of the sexes for any reason! The raciest thing you will experience with your friends is a coffee shop with your same sex friends or a family dinner. The sexes are segregated what ever the event, even at a Saudi “party” you will find the women in one area and the men in another.

With not even a cinema; eating, the malls and the souks (markets) are about your only option within the cities. There are many places to eat with all tastes catered for, you will find just about every western restaurant chain has outlets in Saudi; from Applebee’s to McDonalds. There are also many restaurants serving Saudi, Lebanese, Turkish, in fact any type of food you can imagine, Saudi is a great place to get fat!

The malls here are very modern with all of the western chain stores that you could imagine in any western mall (Except maybe the naughty knickers stores!) They are great places to spend time, especially for the women! They also have some great food courts (again be careful about segregation), and often have great play areas with some fine rides for the children with everything from bumper cars to rollercoasters (the Saudis love their kids!)

The malls vary from smaller older malls to brand new "mega" malls which are huge and contain everything you need for a whole day and night out for the whole family. Malls generally are open to around midnight or 1am at the weekends.

The souks are great, you can find almost anything that you want from rugs to very fine gold jewelry. However be warned that as a westerner you will be seen as a walking wallet and charged accordingly. Most of the vendors will try to rip you off for as much as they can, if you can pick out what you like then get someone “local” do the haggling for you, but always haggle – there is always more than one “final price”, when you know how much things should cost it is much easier to navigate your way around the souks and find the bargains.

Find where the souks are if you want to furnish your house, prices on the souks will be a third or less of what you will pay in the big stores and you can find some very ornate quality work.

There are a number of Gyms for men around the kingdom, most well equipped and attended with all of the facilities you would expect.

However Gyms for women do not legally exist unless part of a hospital! So women will have a tough time finding a good gym off compound!

You can walk outside, many people exercise by walking along the seafronts in both Jeddah and Al-Khobar, this can be a very sweaty experience as even in the evenings the temperatures are well above 30 degrees. Do not try running! As well as the seafronts you will see a number of areas where the Saudis will walk around various blocks. But remember women must still wear their Abayas over their clothes!

On the Compounds it is another matter, western compounds tend to have fairly western rules, some even have bars and regular discos but kept fairly low key so as not to offend. There is always alcohol available, either the home brew variety or if you talk to the Saudis most have access to a few bottles of Jack for a steep price! I have met a few people who have come to Saudi Arabia to try to escape drinking problems who have then ended up with even bigger problems as there is nothing much else to do on the compounds in the evenings except sit around the pool with your buddies and drink!

In addition to the compounds there are also occasional events at the embassies, so get yourself signed up and meet some people there.

You can get yourself signed up for various excursions through the various social networks in the compounds for trips out into the desert, sight seeing, diving and so on, there is a surprising amount to see!

If you are on the coast there are a number of beach resorts that you can visit, some of these are western only and you can dress and behave as such. The seas and the beaches are relatively clean and there are often pools restaurants and places to relax in the shade.

In addition to this they also have villas that can be rented out for a night or several, depending on how “posh” the resort is, these can cost anything from 500 – 2000SAR per night depending on location, size and season.

Often you can go on diving and boat trips either from these resorts or close by.

For a more private party, it is possible to hire small private villas with pools on the edges of the cities, these can cost 1000 – 2000 per night plus. If you are looking to have a party off compound with ladies, booze, swimming pool, music and so on these are your best bet – but don’t get too noisy! Loud western music and women giggling and screaming could get you busted! Otherwise these are ideal.

If you do want to escape for a wild weekend then it is not too expensive to get on a plane to Dubai or to queue for several hours with all of the Saudis trying to get across the causeway into Bahrain! I guess that the Saudis are travelling there for religious purposes not to drink beer and bed the many prostitutes that fill the bars and nightclubs, but I may be wrong!

Women cannot leave the kingdom without the permission of their husbands (fathers), if you want to leave make sure that you get the right forms filled in or you will be held!

The rules within Dubai and Bahrain are officially the same as in Saudi Arabia however a blind eye is turned to what goes on in most places, however if you behave badly in a “family” area or someone decides to complain about you, you need to get away as quickly as possible!

My advice is that wherever you are in the middle east, if some asks you to stop doing something or complains about your behaviour; immediately stop, don’t argue, and get away as quickly as possible. These problems tend to fester in peoples minds and the problem becomes bigger and bigger even though you have stopped, often resulting in police being called and so on. So get away as soon as possible even if everything seems ok!

If you enjoyed this article and want to read more about living in Saudi Arabia follow the links below.

The following are a selection of links which may help you in your search for entertainment and things to do if you are an expat working in Saudi Arabia.

If you are bored with your current position or are looking for your first Saudi Arabia Job this will help you in your search, then you may need help with your Saudi Visas, I have found the application process to be very entertaining at times! You can also learn more about being an expat in Saudi Arabia and how many Saudis treat expatriates in Saudi before you decide if you are ready to come to the Kingdom..

If you need to find a Saudi Arabia Hotel or a Saudi Arabia Compounds these links can help as well as provide you with information about the various alternatives and how you can find entertainment on compounds in Saudi Arabia.

If you are female then there are many restrictions placed on Saudi Arabia Women so your choices for finding entertainment in KSA can be severely limited.

Traveling in Saudi Arabia is an entertainment in its self! This Saudi Arabian Airline review will educate you regarding the airlines and the following about Saudi roads, Saudi Accidents, and driving from Riyadh to Jeddah by road will give you information about one of the most dangerous forms of entertainment in KSA; Driving!

If you are a Muslim then you may wish to see the Makkah Clock Tower or for the more daring less religious types you may want to try dating in Saudi Arabia, but remember that mixing with the opposite sex is a very dangerous sport in Saudi Arabia.

Here are some useful links that may come in handy if you are within Saudi Arabia or looking to visit Saudi Arabia for work or any other reason;

Saudi Arabian Airlines; Get on a plane and visit the other cities within Saudi Arabia as something to do for a weekend, for a few hundred SAR you can visit anywhere in the Kingdom.

Saudi Government Links; Saudi Government website, links to other sites in Saudi Arabia, you can possibly find out about events and festivals to visit for entertainment in KSA.

British Embassy in Riyadh; UK Embassy in Riyadh, sign up as one of the "flock" and you will be invited to events and parties within the embassy where you will be able to get real beer and meet fellow Brits.

US Embassy in Riyadh; US Embassy in Riyadh also holds parties and events in the same vein, so if you buddy up with a friend of a different nationality you can be sure of something to do most weekends in Saudi Arabia.

Philippine Embassy in Riyadh; Philippine Embassy in Riyadh, have been to a great festival held in the embassy in Riyadh, was a very nice day out.

Embassies in Saudi Arabia; Contact Details for All Embassies in KSA, useful to find out about other events going on around the country.

Saudi Arabia Travel Advice; US Travel advice for Saudi Arabia should be heeded before you go traveling into areas that you are not familiar with.

Arab News; Arab Newspaper where you can find out about forthcoming events and festivals and the like throughout the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Haj Travel Information; Saudi Arabia Haj Information should you be a Muslim looking for something to do in KSA.

Muslim Sacred Sites; Sacred Muslim Sites in KSA to visit if you like historical and religious outings within Saudi Arabia.

Entertainment in Saudi Arabia; Things to do in Saudi Arabia for entertainment and enjoyment.

Learn to Speak Arabic; Learn to speak Arabic online so that you can better enjoy your travels and socializing with the local people..

Arabic words and phrases; Some Handy words and Phrases so that you can bargin with the vendors in the Saudi souks and order your food.

The above links may come in handy if you are visiting or an Expat working and living in Saudi Arabia, I hope they can help you find entertainment in Saudi Arabia and help you in planning what to do here in Saudi Arabia.