Saudi Arabia Travel Overview
Important facts
Capital: Ar Rijad (See more on ITYPEMBA.COM)
Official language: Arabic
Currency: Riyal
Continent: West Asia
Pilgrimage to Mecca
The Saudis have managed like no other nation to make a profit from their religion.
Location
According to Countryaah, Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the Arabian Peninsula. This absolute monarchy borders Jordan, Qatar, Iraq and Kuwait, as well as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman and Yemen. In addition, the country has two sea access points: one to the Red Sea in the east and a coastal strip to the Arabian Gulf or the Gulf of Persia. Riyadh – the capital of the country – is located in the center of Saudi Arabia. However , every year most of the country’s visitors make a pilgrimage to the Red Sea coast in Mecca. Once in a lifetime a pilgrimage to Meccato do is one of the duties of a devout Muslim.
Alongside Mecca, Medina is one of the most important pilgrimage sites in Islam.
Vacation in Saudi Arabia
The country is strongly influenced by Islam: women should never move in public without a veil, and driving a car is forbidden to women in Saudi Arabia!
If you are on the west coast, be sure to pay a visit to Jiddah. Surrounded by the pilgrimage sites of Mecca and Medina, the city is like their opposite pole. Pilgrims from all over the world have left their mark on this city and it has become an incomparable melting pot of cultures. The city is seen as dangerous by the Saudis. In Jiddah, some things are possible that seem unimaginable in the rest of the country: wearing bikinison the beach, for example. Visit this city and especially its old town before it is too late and it becomes one of so many concrete deserts that already exist in Saudi Arabia.
Currency
Currency (sub-unit)
Riyal (20 Qirshes = 100 Hallalas)
ISO 4217 code
SAR / 682
Geography
Continent: Asia
Region: west
Geo coordinates: N 23 ° 53 ‘9.4 ” E 45 ° 4’ 45″
Highest mountain: Jabal Sawda (3,133 m)
Total area: 1,960,582 km²
Mainland: 1,960,582 km²
National border: 4,415 km
Coastline: 2,640 km
Politics
Dependency: Great Britain until 1932
UN member since: 1945
Other political affiliation: Arab League
Form of government: Autocratic monarchy
Economy
Export goods: Petroleum, dates, skins
BSP: $ 302,667,000,000
GDP: $ 294,898,000,000
GDP purchasing power parity: $ 362 billion
Economic growth: 6.7%
GDP share of agriculture: 2.8%
GDP share of industry: 62.5%
GDP share of services: 34.7%
Inflation rate: 0.5%
State budget revenue: $ 4294967295
State budget expenditure: $ 4294967295
National debt: 41.6%
Export: $ 207 billion
Import: $ 57.46 billion
Foreign debt: $ 38,230,000,000
Gold and currency reserves: $ 29.47 billion
Electricity consumption: 162,200 million KWh
Gas reserves: 6,544,000 million m³
Gas production: 66,720 million m³
Gas consumption: 66,720 million m³
Oil reserves: 262,700 million m³
Oil production: 8,388,607 million m³
Oil consumption: 1,993,000 million m³
Cultivation area: 1.76%
Sheep: 8,230,000 pieces
Fishing: 60,000 t
Demographic data
Residents: 27,019,800
Residents in cities: 23.244.100
Average age: 21.4 years
0-14 years: 38.2%
15-64 years: 59.4%
> 65 years: 2.4%
Population growth: 2.18%
Birth rate: 29.34 / 1,000 residents
Death rate: 2.58 / 1,000 residents
Migration: -4.94 / 1,000 residents
Ratio men / women: 1.2
Fertility: 4 children / woman
Infant mortality: 12.81 ‰
Life expectancy men: 73.66 years
Life expectancy women: 77.78 years
Country codes and abbreviations
ISO 3166 Alpha 2: SA
ISO 3166 Alpha 3: SOW
ISO 3166 numeric: 682
Top Level Domain: sa
IOC country code: KSA
UN / LOCODE: SA
Source: Abbreviationfinder
Communication
Telephone connections: 3,752,000
Cell Phones: 12,810,000
Radios: 8,310,000
TV: 6,310,000
Computer: 5,260,000
Internet users: 3,930,000
Transportation
Railway lines: 1,392 km
Paved roads: 48,686 km
Cars: 2,579,000
Merchant fleet (ships over 1,000 GRT): 60
Pipelines: 9.413
Health
Number of doctors: 36,840
Daily food intake: 2.870 kcal / resident
Education
Illiteracy: 20%
History
Foundation: 622
Last sovereign since: 1932
Religion
Main religious group: Muslims
Crime
Prison inmates: 27,800
Military
Armed forces (troop strength): 121,000
Main battle tank: 1,050
Battleships: 8th
Warplanes: 340
Helicopter: 185
Defense Spending: $ 29,438,000,000
GETTING THERE
Arriving by plane
The national airline is called Saudi Arabian Airlines (SV) (Internet: www.saudiairlines.com) and flies from Munich to Riyadh and Jeddah as well as from Geneva via Frankfurt / aM to Jeddah and from Geneva to Riyadh. The flights from Frankfurt to Jeddah take place four times a week and are linked with connecting flights to Dammam three times a week.
Lufthansa (LH) offers direct flight connections from Frankfurt and Munich to Riyadh.
Ua Air France (AF), Swiss International (LX) and KLM also fly to Saudi Arabia.
Flight times
Frankfurt – Jeddah: 5 hours 15 minutes; Frankfurt – Riyadh: 5 hours; Vienna – Dhahran: 6 hours 30 minutes; Vienna – Jeddah: 5 hours 50 minutes (with changes); Vienna – Riyadh: 4 hours 20 minutes; Zurich – Dhahran: 7 hours 20 minutes (with changes); Zurich – Jeddah: 5 hours 40 minutes (with one stopover); Zurich – Riyadh: 4 hours 40 minutes
Air passes
With the Middle East Airpass the Star Alliance can explore travelers up to ten flights, the countries Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria and the United Arab Emirates. More information is available on the Star Alliance website, www.staralliance.com.
With the Visit Middle East Pass from Allianz Oneworld, travelers can book any number of flights (at least 3 flights) with the participating airlines British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Qatar Airways and Royal Jordanian and travel to the following 12 countries: Egypt, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and United Arab Emirates.
Departure fee
50 RI (children under 2 years and Haj or Umrah pilgrims are excluded).
Arrival by car
Cars: The main long-distance roads lead from Amman (Jordan) to Dammam, Medina and Jeddah. There are also roads to Yemen (from Jeddah), Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, as well as a causeway between Al Khobar and Bahrain.
Bus: The Saudi Arabian Public Transport Company (SAPTCO) offers bus connections between Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. Further bus connections to Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Syria and Turkey.
Taxiscan be found in all major cities; they have taximeters whose tariffs are prescribed by the government. For longer journeys, however, you should agree the price in advance. Many drivers outside of Riyadh and Jeddah do not speak English.
Arrival by ship
The largest international passenger ports are Dammam (on the Gulf) and Jeddah and Yanbu (Red Sea).
A passenger ferry connects Saudi Arabia with Egypt.