AlUla Season

AlUla Season is a tourism and cultural season in AlUla Governorate in north-western Saudi Arabia. It comes within the Saudi Seasons initiative launched by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage, and its most prominent event is the Winter at Tantora festival. [1][2]

The Royal Commission for AlUla is responsible for protecting AlUla and developing it culturally and touristically, and its Board of Directors has been chaired by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Prime Minister since its establishment in July 2017; the season's events draw on the governorate's archaeological and natural assets. [12][11]

On 27 February 2019 the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage launched the “Saudi Seasons 2019” initiative in its pilot edition, comprising eleven tourism seasons covering most regions of the Kingdom, a first of its kind at the regional level; among these seasons was AlUla Season, alongside Riyadh Season, Diriyah Season, Hail Season and others. [1]

The events of the Winter at Tantora cultural festival were launched in AlUla Governorate on 19 December 2018, organised by the Royal Commission for AlUla and attended by His Royal Highness Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan, the Minister of Culture and Governor of the Commission; the “Maraya” venue was opened during it and hosted eight international artists over seven weeks, and the festival continued until 9 February 2019. [2]

The first festival concluded on 25 February 2019 after a month of events, covering thirteen programmes at thirteen archaeological and cultural sites, among them AlUla Old Town and Elephant Rock (Jabal AlFil), and it included equestrian displays and artistic and musical performances alongside a celebration of the winter farming season. [3]

The second Winter at Tantora season was held from 19 December 2019 to 7 March 2020, and included a celebration marking 250 years since the birth of the German composer Beethoven, from 2 to 4 January 2020, within a programme of concerts at Maraya Theatre. [4][5]

Guinness World Records documented Maraya Theatre in AlUla Governorate as the largest mirrored building in the world; it seats about 500 people and is located in Wadi Ashar near the foot of Harrat Uwayrid. [6]

Maraya Hall is one of the most prominent multi-purpose destinations in AlUla and a global platform for international events in the fields of culture, politics, economy and the arts; its façade is clad in 9,740 reflective glass panels that mirror the terrain of Wadi Ashar and the AlUla desert, and it rises 26 metres above the golden sands. [7]

The Winter at Tantora festival takes its name from “Tantora”, the sundial in the Old Town that the people of AlUla used to tell the time and to announce the start of the winter farming season; the people of AlUla revive these old traditions every year. [8]

The “Tantora” celebration was launched inside the Old Town for five days within the Winter at Tantora festival, which lasts six weeks and comprised four experiences, among them the play “Ibn Battuta”. [8]

In the 2022 edition the “Tantora celebration” ran from 22 to 24 December 2022, announcing the start of the Winter at Tantora festival, with the participation of more than 200 artists, a live orchestra performance and a visual projection on the walls of the Old Town and its citadel. [9]

On 18 December 2025 the events of the Winter at Tantora festival were launched and continue until 10 January 2026, comprising a range of cultural, artistic and heritage programmes, most notably “Old Town Nights”, “Tantora Terraces” and the “AlManshiyah Carnival”, alongside culinary arts experiences and musical events in an atmosphere reflecting the authenticity of AlUla and the richness of its cultural heritage. [10]

AlUla Governorate contains the site of Hegra, built by the ingenuity of the Nabataean civilisation and registered as the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Kingdom, and Jabal Ikmah, classified as the largest open library in the Arabian Peninsula for holding hundreds of archaeological inscriptions, as well as Elephant Rock and the Old Town, which was once a meeting point for pilgrim caravans, beside green oases holding hundreds of palm trees and various citrus trees. [11]

Numerous festivals and celebrations are held in the governorate, foremost among them the Winter at Tantora festival, drawing on these archaeological and natural assets and the diverse geography of AlUla. [11]

Q: What is AlUla Season? A: A tourism and cultural season in AlUla Governorate in north-western Saudi Arabia, part of the Saudi Seasons initiative and taking the Winter at Tantora festival as its most prominent event.

Q: When did AlUla Season begin? A: “AlUla Season” was included among eleven seasons in the “Saudi Seasons 2019” initiative launched on 27 February 2019, while the events of “Winter at Tantora” began on 19 December 2018.

Q: Why was the “Winter at Tantora” festival given this name? A: It takes its name from “Tantora”, the sundial in the Old Town, on which the people of AlUla relied to tell the time and to announce the start of the winter farming season.

Q: What is Maraya Hall? A: A building in AlUla Governorate documented in Guinness World Records as the largest mirrored building in the world, seating about 500 people and hosting international events in culture, politics, economy and the arts.

Q: What are the most prominent landmarks of AlUla visited by the season's visitors? A: The site of “Hegra”, the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Kingdom, “Jabal Ikmah”, the largest open library in the Arabian Peninsula, “Elephant Rock” and “the Old Town”.