48 hours in Riyadh: what to do and what to see (Updated)

Mar 9

Written By Miquel

When I first published this post, it was meant to be a classical “48 hours in the city” type of article. However, successive business trips to the Saudi capital have allowed me to explore more of the city, to the point that I have kept adding more recommendations about what to do and what to see when visiting Riyadh. So, it may be quite challenging now to do it all in 48 hours.

Nevertheless, I still think the places and experiences that I list on this post are still mostly doable in a relatively short visit, so, in keeping with the theme of this site, I decided to keep the title while continuing to enrich the content.

The Saudi government is, in fact, investing heavily to make of the kingdom one of the top countries by number of visitors in the world: new airlines, airports, resorts and cities are in the menu. In fact, a whole new business district gleaming with new skyscrapers, hotels and office buildings appeared to have emerged out of nowhere in the short time since my earlier visit.

So, it is entirely possible that some Saudi cities may look quite different in a few years time, see for example, the massive restoration work that is going into restoring Jeddah’s historical district, but let’s focus on the Riyadh of 2026.

What interesting things can a visitor see and do in Riyadh already today? Let’s have a look…

Top thing to do in Riyadh

The bridge at the top of Riyadh’s Kingdom Center

If there’s an iconic building in Riyadh, this is the Kingdom Center, a 302m skyscraper with a very prominent “eye” at the top.

The very top level of the building, which acts as a bridge between the two sides of the opening, can actually be visited. And this is actually something I would recommend doing first if you find yourself with some spare time in Riyadh.

From the top of the Kingdom Center you have the best views of the city, giving you an idea of the extension covered by the urban sprawl. It is even possible to discern exactly where the city ends and the desert starts, without transition.

From here you can also get an excellent view of Riyadh’s central strip, which the Saudi authorities expect to develop, over time, as a sort of Dubai or Manhattan-like skyscraper district.

As of 2025, only a few of the planned high rises are currently standing. One of them is the Al Faisaliah Tower, which is another iconic skyscraper, with a roughly triangular shape and a giant 24-meter diameter ball at its top (you can see it in the picture opening this entry).

One thing that surprised me is that there was almost no one around when I visited, neither in the viewpoint, nor in the luxury mall at the base of the building. I counted about a dozen employees on my way to the top, but only a couple of other visitors in the whole time I spent there.

Nevertheless, the views were magnificent!

Riyadh Season & Boulevard City

One of the symbols of the process of liberalization that Saudi Arabia is undergoing is the Riyadh Season.

This is a festival that runs from October to March, with many cultural and entertainment activities scheduled throughout the city. This is quite a radical development is you think that cinema, music and other forms of entertainment were severely curtailed until only a few years ago!

The Riyadh Season has several venues but one of the epicenters is Boulevard City and the adjacent Boulevard World (BLVD World), a massive entertainment complex on the western side of Riyadh. Think Disneyworld meets Time Square, but in the desert!

At the time of my first visit I was only able to pay an evening visit to Boulevard City, so I will focus first on this bit. The area is being developed so fast that it is likely that by the time you read this post, new amusement areas have already sprung up in the vicinity (there is certainly no shortage of land for this!).

UPDATE (as of March 2026): indeed, by the time of my next visits, Boulevard World was already completed and in full swing. So keep reading because I will describe it next as well!

You can tell Boulevard World is really new and no effort has been spared in order to create a sort of immersive experience with plenty of sensorial stimuli, be it light, music or water effects.

In some ways, it is not too different from the typical set up of a World Expo (and, yes, after Osaka, the next World Expo will actually be held in Riyadh!)

By the way, to give you an idea of the scale of the place, Boulevard World also hosts a massive man-made lagoon, which is quite a thing considering the Riyadh’s desert environment! (always wondered where do they get the water from to run such a huge city in this very high and dry location).

There are also plenty of places to eat throughout Riyadh’s Boulevard City, although the two suggestions I present further below are actually in other parts of the city.

Visiting Boulevard World in Riyadh

Boulevard World is the theme park adjacent to the Boulevard City (and both together are part of the collection of amusement venues and festivals that are known as “Riyadh Season”).

I had been to Boulevard City before, a true example of the social transformation that has been going on in Saudi, so I was curious to see what Boulevard World next door was about, particularly considering that Boulevard City is already a pretty vast entertainment complex. The visit didn’t disappoint and, as you may imagine, it has been built on a massive scale.

What is Riyadh’s Boulevard World, then?

If you have been to any of the Disney parks or to a place like Port Aventura, near Barcelona, the concept will sound immediately familiar: it is a massive entertainment venue which is organized in different thematic sections each aiming to reproduce a country or region of the world. Visitors can follow an itinerary that takes them on an (almost) literal world tour and can enjoy activities, foods and shopping related to each of these areas.

There is an entrance fee of either 29 or 58 rials depending on whether it’s weekday or weekend, that is $8 or $16 (€6.7 / €13.4) respectively at March 2026 exchange rates.

So, pretty reasonable compared to Disney, I think!

To get the ticket you will need to download an app called Webook. It is a bit annoying to have to download an app you may never use again just for one purpose, but, apparently there is no other way! The purchase process, however, is pretty straightforward once you have downloaded the app.

The whole place is structured around a vast artificial lake, with the different countries and regions of this “World” easily recognizable by the iconic landmarks you come across.

There are sections dedicated to: Saudi (with Jeddah’s famous coral houses), China, Turkey, Central Asia, the GCC countries, Egypt, Africa, Greece, Ancient Rome, Italy, Mexico, Spain, India, the US, France, Thailand, Japan…and quite a few other places I can’t even remember!

And there are also some items that are not country-specific but pretty cool, as well, like real size dinosaurs and a giant sphere covered in LED lights that keeps depicting different very realistic images all the time, a bit like the famous sphere in Las Vegas…because there is a touch of Vegas, as well, in this whole Boulevard concept.

It is a pretty huge territory and, even if we practically didn’t stop to eat, drink or play, it took us a good two hours to walk the whole itinerary at a relatively fast pace.

So, definitely a place to visit in Riyadh if you have some spare time in the evening, but, beware! If you are planning to see both, Boulevard City and Boulevard World, better do each of them on separate days, because otherwise it can be exhausting!

The Saqer Al-Jazirah Saudi Royal Air Force Museum

I did cover this museum in this post for the Allplane aviation site, however, I thought any post about things to do and to see in Riyadh should include a mention to this excellent museum.

If you are even minimally interested in aviation, you will like it! Even if, truth, be said, it is far from easy to reach. The only way to get there is by taxi/Uber and the entrances are not clearly signalled, so actually my Uber left me at the far end of the perimeter, not at the main entrance.

Likewise, getting back to my hotel was a small odissey, since I Uber drivers kept cancelling rides at the last moment and took me something like one hour or waiting time, plus a not very pleasant walk on the side of the mortorway to a nearby McDonald’s to be able to get a ride back! So make sure you have enough battery and a charger with you and some way to access the internet on your phone if you don’t wish to get stranded!

On the positive side, I must say that the museum staff were super friendly and helpful and helped me with my internet connection and offered me tea and sweets during my wait.

The museum collections are pretty impressive and are split between an indoor and an outdoor part. Pretty much every model of aircraft operated by the Royal Saudi Air Force is in display here and there are also some civilian aircraft that were once operated by flag carrier Saudia, including a rather remarkable Lockheed L-1011 Tristar.

Where to stay in Riyadh

Since I have been at two different hotels in Riyadh, on different occasions, I will outline both here, starting by the one I liked the most.

Radisson Blu Diplomatic Quarters

This is a very nice hotel, located in the diplomatic area of Riyadh, to the west of the city. In fact, the whole area has some sort of special security status, as there are checkpoints to get in an out.

The whole facility is super new and it shows in its design. It is not super central, but you need a car to move anywhere in Riyadh, so I guess this is a rather secondary consideration here.

Also worth of note is the breakfast, which was really tasty and had an interesting mix of international and Arabic specialities.

I was also surprised to find out the room had a small kitchen!

A couple more pics of the room, which was impeccably clean and contemporary in style.

Al Waha Hotel Riyad

This is a more centrally located hotel, belonging to a local chain.

The room was quite spacious, but, to be honest, there were some service glitches and, overall, despite being technicall a four-star, it was not nearly at the same level as the other hotel I previously commented on.

The registration took very long, I understand there is some paperwork to be filled, but it was not done very efficiently to say the least.

Then there were issues with some of the lights in the room, namely the one in the cupboards, which wouldn’t switch off due to some faulty sensor, so I had an ongoing fight throughout the night, since it activated at random several times, waking me up.

Last and not least, my room was not done upon coming back from my day appointments and this, I was told, was due to not having indicated my preferences for room cleaning, since apparently it is a requirement so that female staff can know when they can enter a room. This is apparently by regulation, but I would have appreciated some warning before hand.

Having said that, when I complained about the above points, the staff were apologetic and they made sure the issues were fixed on the second day of the stay.

Best Western Premier Riyadh

King Ibn Saud Abdulaziz Saudi, As Sulimaniyah

Riyadh, 12621

This hotel appears to be quite new or recently renovated. It is a great value option to stay in Riyadh, offering good quality-price. Staff were also very friendly throughout.

Location-wise it is not super central, but not too far from downtown either. In Riyadh you always need to take a car or taxi ride anyway!

Breakfast was ok, although I would say that is the weakest part of its value proposition.

Other positive features: fast wifi and a comfortable lobby stocked at all times with Arabic coffee and dates.

The room was really large. In fact it was more like a two-piece apartment. Perhaps the most remarkable thing is that the bathroom was split in two separate pieces, with the shower alone being almost like a room in itself!

You can check how the rooms at the Best Western Premier Riyadh look like in the pics below:

Where to eat in Riyadh

When it comes to getting the proper Saudi eating experience in Riyadh, the choice is clear.

Najd Village

https://najdvillage.com

This is a bit like an oasis in the middle of central Riyadh. There are no traditional tables, but rather an array of eating areas arranged around a central courtyard with a small garden.

Najd Village restaurant aims to replicate the atmosphere of the desert caravanserais, where desert travelers used to rest and eat. You actually seat on the ground, or rather on carpets, and usually you would share the

Now, beware the portions, because they are really, really huge!

We were three in our group and we each ordered one item from the menu and we could hardly finish it! But it was really good! I’ve been twice to this restaurant and the standards have been pretty consistent.

As per the food, there is a good selection of Arabic cuisine specialities, lots of nicely cooked meat and rice with a diversity of breads to go with, which really adds to the experience!

Restaurant Awani - أواني Tahlia

This more of a Lebanese place offering specialities from the broader Middle East. It is rather central, modern and functional, and the dishes were actually pretty tasty, so I thought it worth including it here, even if it is not really a local Saudi cuisine restaurant. You can get an idea of what it is like with the pictures below.

Day trip from Riyadh: a tour of the Edge of the World

If looking for something to do just outside Riyadh, but without having to venture very far out, the Edge of the World tour is your thing. It can even be done in half a day, since the main sights are less than an hour by car from western Riyadh.

Very important, though: you need to get a guide with a proper 4x4 car. This is not an activity a non-local can really do on its own. There is, however, no shortage of companies offering day tours of the Edge of the World from Riyadh.

In fact two “Edges of the World” are marketed as day excursions from Riyadh by these tour operators.

We chose the one called “Second Edge of the World” by a company called Riyadh Tours, but my understanding is that, whether “first” or “second” Edge of the World, it is pretty much the same experience, with the difference being the access route. One of the routes is only open on certain days, while the other is always open.

Only the “Second Edge of the World” was available when our group was there, but don’t be fooled by the name, it was well worth it!

In fact, I think the actual experience is pretty similar and it involves venturing out into the desert towards a ridge of hills west of Riyadh, contemplate the otherworldly landscape, have lunch on the spot and head back to the city.

Definitely one of the top things to do in Riyadh if you have a spare half-day!

This was quite an interesting experience for me, since I always imagined the Saudi desert as a sort of flat space with sand dunes, but the reality is a lot more diverse. There are, actually, quite a few plateaus and hills in the desert and not all of it is sandy, a big part of it is actually a hard crusty surface!

So, in these tours (I think they more or less follow the same programme), the guide comes pick you up to the hotel in his vehicle and he takes you through a number of panoramic viewpoints in the desert.

The Edge of the World derives its name from the fact that there is a vertical cliffs that falls directly over the vast plain of the Saudi desert. It is pretty spectacular and provides great opportunities for Instagram-like pictures.

Most of the tours include also a lunch on the spot. The guide carries everything that is needed for this in the back of the car. At the time of the visit the temperature was pretty warm, in the high twenties-low thirties celsius, but still pretty bearable. So our guide just spread out some carpets and cooked some simple, but tasty meal on the spot. It was a great convivial moment with the group, an amazing experience.

As an added bonus, on our way to the Edge of the World we passed by some bedouin settlements that had camels and we stopped for a quick look at these amazing animals. As you can see in the picture below, they were quite friendly!

By the way, is planning a trip to Saudi Arabia, you may also like my post about Jeddah, its UNESCO World Heritage historical town and the Red Sea Corniche!

And if you considering traveling with Saudia, the national airline of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, check out my Saudia flight review!

Miquel

News and analysis about the airline industry

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