A solo female traveler in Saudi Arabia
I write this article in the hope that it will help first-time travelers to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) feel more prepared for their trip. To this end, I will avoid making any comments on the political situation within the country or its diplomatic relations. My experience and advice are based on two separate trips to Dammam (Eastern Province) in the latter half of 2018.
Even though I volunteered for the project that took me to Saudi Arabia, I was still nervous (read: terrified) when the time came to go. There were few resources to rely on and most sources I found were written by men or written by women who traveled together with their husband — although these sources were helpful, they did not allay my misgivings about traveling there as a solo female. One important exception I should mention here are the blog posts written by Catherine from the My Midlands Life blog; she wrote about her experience in 2015 and again about her experience in 2018. Reading her blog posts helped adjust my expectations and calm me down, therefore I hope this article can do the same for other travelers by providing details on my preparation, arrival, working experience, free time, and departure. My time in Saudi Arabia completely changed my perspective on the country, its culture, and its people. I had a great time during both trips and I would now be happy to return there in the future.
Trip Preparation
Most likely, you will be traveling to KSA for work and you will need to apply for a business visa. Your employer should be able to provide the necessary documentation and should tell you which visa to apply for. As a citizen and resident of the Netherlands, I had to apply for the visa through a third party working for the Saudi embassy. The form was relatively straightforward — it warns that solo female travelers under the age of 30 years old are likely to be rejected, but the travel team assured me that rejection was rare when applying for a business visa sponsored by a company. After submitting the relevant information, I had to make an appointment at the office of the third party in The Hague, to submit the original paperwork, register my fingerprints, and pay for the application.
My appointment was at 12:15, so I arrived at 12:00 as instructed by the visa appointment paperwork. The waiting room was completely empty — as opposed to the waiting room for Russian visas across the hall — and my name was called as soon as I registered my presence on the machine by the front desk. The appointment itself was efficient and simple, meaning I was out the door and on my way home before my official appointment time of 12:15. Compared to my experience applying for an American visa, this process was a breeze and very well-organized. The third party sent updates by text message, letting me know exactly where my passport was (they must send it to the real embassy), and three days later my passport was delivered back to me complete with a Saudi visa. Magic! It was time to truly prepare for my trip.
Although I was traveling to KSA for work, the help provided to me was minimal. I was asked to watch a training video featuring a long list of situations to avoid — going anywhere during prayer time, using your left hand, pointing the soles of your feet at someone, and much more — not very confidence-inspiring to say the least. A couple of female colleagues and some family friends had traveled to KSA together with male colleagues or relatives, and their advice was certainly appreciated, but I still felt uncomfortable not having spoken to any woman who traveled there alone. After a long and frantic Google-search, I found Catherine’s blog post, which was a tremendous relief. In addition, the friendly community on the TripAdvisor forums helped answer some questions about what I could expect during my journey — assuring me that I was allowed to be out in public alone and recommending a visit to the Corniche.
So, what do you need to prepare before you travel? For starters, there are a couple of places where you can wear “Western” clothing, such as at the hotel, within a compound, and in some cases at the office. In these situations, it is best to wear loose-fitting garments, trousers or skirts which come down to the ankles, shirts which cover the arms to the elbow or to the wrist, and shirts with a high neckline. A lot of these rules also apply to men — I know it’s hot, but shorts and tank tops are frowned upon — you can be refused entry to an establishment if not dressed properly. The Saudis’ have discovered the maximum setting on their A/C units, so I would even recommend bringing along a couple of sweaters.
The biggest problem for women is of course the abaya, a long robe which hides female curves so effectively as to almost make you look square. By law, women are not required to wear an abaya, but the social pressure to wear it is unavoidable (see Saudi women in ‘inside-out abaya’ protest). I would recommend purchasing an abaya before you leave, and fortunately there are specialty (web)shops available in most Western countries. My trip was short-notice, meaning I couldn’t order an abaya and wait for it to be delivered, but I found a lovely little shop called Lamira Boutique in Eindhoven. The shopkeeper was incredibly friendly and helpful — even showing me how to fasten a hijab (head scarf). I purchased a black abaya with decorative beading and a couple of head-scarves. Most of the local women in KSA wear black, both the abaya and the hijab, but I met several foreign women who wore colored abayas. Pick a color depending on how much you are willing to stand out, because the locals do stare, some more discreetly than others, at foreign women.
Although I purchased some head-scarves as a precaution, covering your hair is not required by law for non-Muslim women and I rarely felt pressure to do so. As a result, I spent almost the entire trip with my hair uncovered. I do recommend carrying a scarf with you in case you are asked to cover up or when the staring starts making you uncomfortable. Any scarf you have lying around at home will do the trick, although keep in mind that you will overheat wearing a thick, European, winter scarf outside in KSA. Choose a light, summer shawl if you have one.
Besides proper clothing, I recommend carrying copies of your important documents (passport, credit cards, insurance cards), carrying prescriptions for any medicine you have, and bringing books or other entertainment (KSA is not exactly a tourist hot-spot). For the ladies, don’t forget to bring your sanitary products; you may not find your preferred products in KSA. You are better off placing these items in your check-in luggage, because I had the surreal and amusing experience of trying to explain the purpose of a tampon to the staff in the women’s section of airport security.
Arriving in Saudi
Around half an hour before landing in Saudi Arabia, you will see women enter the toilet wearing Western clothing, and exit it wearing an abaya. Personally, I just grabbed the abaya from my backpack and donned it over my other clothing while standing in the aisle. I chose not to cover my hair, but I did drape the scarf around my neck for easy access. The abaya is surprisingly comfortable and comes with the advantage of not having to worry about whatever clothing you decide to wear underneath; a useful feature if you come from Europe, where fashion ranges from suggestive to revealing.
The first real hurdle you will face at your destination is the passport control service. Calling this a ‘service’ is a real stretch — during both of my trips I saw the border control agents take more breaks than serve waiting travelers. If you are unlucky, your flight will arrive at the same time as several other flights and the queues can become lengthy. There are two queues for foreigners, one for first-time arrivals and one for repeat visitors. Both are clearly marked, and the choice is straightforward. During both of my trips I spent about 5 minutes waiting in line before I was approached by one of the roaming border security agents and told to “Come”. They escorted me to the front of the queue, pointed at the next available border agent, and within a couple of minutes I was through passport control and officially in KSA. This was not an isolated incident because I experienced the same preferential treatment a few more times, always when standing alone in a queue. When I asked about it later, my Saudi colleagues confirmed that it is normal to let solo women skip the queue. I suspect my blond hair might have been a contributing factor, but hey, I’ll take it.
Once you have collected your luggage and passed a security checkpoint, you reach the arrivals hall. I took some time to buy a local SIM card for my phone. Although you can get by using hotel Wi-Fi and occasional roaming, I found it useful to have a stable and cheap Saudi internet bundle. I paid the equivalent of €30 for a 1-month bundle including calls, text messages, and unlimited internet. The SIM card is linked to your visa, and the government only allows one per visa, so don’t forget to bring your old card with you if you travel to KSA again. Re-charging an old SIM card takes less time than de-activating it and activating a new one. There are multiple vendors located next to the exit and the employees were very friendly — teaching me some basic Arabic words in exchange for the equivalent Dutch words. In addition to the SIM card, there are several ATMs available where I retrieved some local currency. Credit cards are common, but I feel more comfortable having a small amount of cash on hand. Another option is to buy some Saudi riyal from one of the money exchange services at your departure airport; I recommend placing an order before you depart because most of these services won’t have it available by default.
Public transportation does not exist yet in KSA, so renting a car or taking a taxi were the only options for traveling between the airport and the hotel. The hotel concierge or any local contacts can also help you organize a driver in advance. Unfortunately, due to a communication error, my driver did not show up, so my first time in Saudi Arabia, I was stuck alone at the airport after midnight. Deciding that my phone bill would be a problem for another day, I turned on roaming and ordered an Uber (the local SIM card needs a couple of hours to be fully activated). Although there is an official taxi system like at any other airport, the drivers do not always speak English, so I chose the convenience of communicating and paying through an application which could automatically translate everything for myself and the driver.
Sadly, with the trip happening late at night, my first impressions of the country can be summarized as: dark. I assumed we drove through desert because the only light came from other cars on the road and the occasional pinprick far off in the distance. The Saudi driving style is not scary for anyone who has visited India before. Driving lanes are discretionary, the speed limit is optional, the indicator lights must all be broken, and accidents are common. The surprisingly high number of police cars on the road does not seem to have any effect. Since other modes of transportation are not available, your only option is to sit tight and hope for the best.
Working with Saudis
Working with the locals in Saudi Arabia can best be described as organized chaos. Appointments are scheduled “sometime in the morning” or “maybe tomorrow”, and plans change every hour. The client is king, or rather, the client is divine. This means the client can show up any time of day and can change requirements at any stage of the project. Everybody is very busy (or pretends to be very busy), so it is best to be prepared for meetings and ask specific questions. Discussions quickly escalate into a loud and boisterous state which would considered a serious argument in Europe but doesn’t seem to be unusual or a cause for worry in KSA.
Of course, I am forced to generalize for the sake of this article; perhaps you will have a completely different experience. I found the Saudis to be honest and confrontational, but also very quick to change the subject of conversation. Like any country with a native language other than English, my conversations with the locals ranged from improvised sign language to fluent discussions. Regardless of their level of English fluency, every person I met was friendly and helpful. They are proud of their country and love to share their food and culture. In addition to feeding you every local dish they can get their hands on, the Saudis love to poke fun at others and themselves. My skin turning lobster-colored after spending only short periods of time in the desert was a source of amusement, and one of the local managers, while pointing at the desert outside, said: “Why would Europeans ever be unhappy here? We have a free sauna every day!”.
At this point I should admit that I almost solely interacted with the local men. Although I saw plenty of women working around the office, the team I worked with had no female colleagues (as a woman in Tech, this is not unusual). I don’t expect the local women would be any less friendly or humorous than their male counterparts. There are some practical matters to consider as a woman interacting with local men. When greeting a Saudi man, you should never offer to shake hands. Many will refuse to touch women to whom they are not related, so you can avoid awkward situations by not being the one to initiate a handshake. I found that 40–50% of the men I met would offer their hand, and at that point it is fine for you to accept the handshake. After a couple of days, I had mentally separated my colleagues into “will shake hands” and “won’t shake hands” lists. In addition to adjusting your greeting habits, be mentally prepared to save money. The men often insisted on paying for my food or other expenses. It made me feel uneasy because I’m used to paying for my fair share of everything, but I learned to accept it as part of their culture.
Having Fun
Saudi Arabia is not exactly a tourist destination, and historically their entertainment options have been very limited (they only recently re-opened cinemas), but it is possible to have fun during your stay! If your definition of fun includes sports, your options will be limited to the hotel gym and swimming pool. Of course, in sports the genders must also be separated, so you should check if your hotel has a gym for women. I assumed swimming would not be an option, so I left my bathing suit at home, but to my surprise the hotel had specific times set aside when women were allowed to use the pool. It is worth the effort to call the hotels you are considering staying with, to ask about the available facilities; the websites were often uninformative.
Outside the hotel, gender separation is always the same: one section for single men, and one section for families. The definition of a single man is any man not accompanied by women or children at that moment in time. If a woman is present, your group needs to sit in the family section. As a solo woman, I need to sit in the family section. Conclusion: woman = family. The two sections are usually completely separate, each with its own entrance, and these are always clearly marked. If you do end up in the wrong section, the staff will usually politely point out your error and send you to the correct section. Gender separation can go far; I was told that single men can be refused entry to the mall, especially on weekends, because the mall is considered a family space.
Hanging out at the mall is a popular pastime in Saudi Arabia, for obvious, air-conditioned reasons. Most malls contain a large number of restaurants, cafés, children’s entertainment, and shops of every possible type. Local brands are underrepresented; most brands will be familiar to you, especially if you have spent any time in the USA. On Friday, most shops are closed until the afternoon. During prayer time, the shops half-close; a general rule is that you can continue shopping or eating if you are already inside, but new customers are prevented from entering. I did see exceptions being made by some establishments, so there must be some nuances to the rule which I don’t fully understand. I usually went to the mall for dinner, because a hotel restaurant is only interesting for so many days, although the hotel restaurant comes with the benefit of not having to cross the street, which is a perilous exercise. Indian and Pakistani cuisine is popular, along with many American fast-food chains, but my personal favorites were the Lebanese restaurants.
The local food usually consists of rice with chopped vegetables and meat or fish; lamb and chicken are popular meat choices, but I also got to try camel meat, which was tender and delicious. Vegetarian options are extremely limited, and nuts were used to flavor the rice in almost every dish I ate, so anyone with allergies should probably stick to foreign cuisine. One of my favorite establishments in the mall was the café specializing in Arabic coffee; a gold-colored coffee brew with various spices mixed in. The taste is quite bitter, so it is often served together with dates. Of course, you can close off your meal with a trip to the shisha lounge, which are numerous and make for a comfortable place to relax.
Alternatives to the mall, albeit specific to the Eastern Province, are the Khobar Corniche and Half Moon Bay. The corniche is a boardwalk along the ocean, lined with parks and restaurants. Saudi families flock to the corniche in the evenings to picnic on the grass. I went for a long walk along the corniche in the evening in October, when the heat is bearable for me and my skin only turns salmon-colored as opposed to lobster-colored. I attracted a lot of stares, which was not unusual, but I also received some comments from small groups of single men. This was the closest I got to feeling a negative vibe from the locals, but the advantage of not speaking Arabic, is that I simply pretend the comments were positive. On the evening that I visited the corniche, there was a car drifting event, complete with loud music and an overzealous announcer. Of course, the audience was separated between two bleachers: one for the men, and one for the women and children. The bleachers were surrounded by a tall fence, but the entrance was wide open and the event seemed to be free, so I walked in to the women’s section and enjoyed the show.
Half Moon Bay is a large area further away from the cities, with hotels, private clubs, beaches, and plenty of entertainment. I saw a beach-side market, families picnicking and hanging out on the beach, and children enjoying camel rides. The best part about visiting Half Moon Bay was seeing the local families enjoy the desert. I saw cars, dirt bikes, dune buggies, quads, and even horse riders crisscrossing the desert dunes. Some families simply parked their car in the desert, set up lawn chairs, and enjoyed hanging out in the sun. There are several vendors renting out quads, so together with my colleagues, we each rented a quad to experience racing through the desert. I needed a couple of minutes to arrange my abaya in such a way that it wouldn’t be caught anywhere in the quad, but that was only a minor challenge. The experience was absolutely worth being covered in sand — it was the best experience I had during my stay in KSA. The key is not to crash into the multitude of cars, all-terrain vehicles, and horses in the desert. I even received some thumbs up from the local women sitting with their families next to their cars.
Departing Saudi
After spending a couple of fascinating, but mentally tiring, weeks in Saudi Arabia, it does feel good to go back home. I organized a taxi through the hotel, because they will usually book the more expensive taxi companies used by foreigners. In my experience, the drivers working for these companies drive more responsibly than the average Uber driver in KSA, so I preferred to use these companies for longer trips.
I flew from the King Fahd International Airport, which is a small airport with a limited number of shops. I never saw the airport get very busy, so the passport control queues are no issue compared to the queues upon arrival in KSA. Of course, the security checkpoints are gender-separated, but clearly marked. The women’s security checkpoint is hidden behind a wall and is otherwise the same as any other security checkpoint. As soon as I entered the airplane, before settling in my seat, I took off and stowed my abaya. I noticed several women already removing their abayas at the airport before entering the airplane, but I felt more comfortable waiting until the last moment.
Visiting Saudi Arabia can cause a sense of culture shock. Everything is different — seeing only sand instead of forests and grassland, the heat and strength of the sun, the gender-separated society, and the communication style used in the workplace — this makes for a journey I will never forget. Being unable to find accurate information before my trip made by imagination run wild; fortunately, the friendliness of the locals quickly put me at ease. I hope this article will be helpful to any women considering traveling to this intriguing country.
