Entertainment in Saudi Arabia is only women and family-oriented. There are no activities for single males, as single men are not allowed in family areas (malls, restaurants, ect...). By law in Riyadh and other places in Saudi, women must be accompanied by a male relative guardians in public, whether foreign or local, failing to do so may result in harassment by locals and/or arrest by the Islamic Police. This rule does not apply to the city of Jeddah, and many women are seen alone, or in groups of ladies, in public without any problems from locals or officials.

Desert excursions are particularly popular with the locals, but are extremely dangerous for foreigners, and especially women, due to the ultra conservative culture of armed Bedouins.

Scuba diving is popular on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coast. Jeddah has a number of dive operators. But extreme caution needs to be applies since very few hospitals are equipped to deal with Scuba diving related injuries and decompression sickness. Hospitals are not accessible to foreigners even during emergency situations and possession of health insurance. Beaches in Jeddah are well known for their diving related death incidences. The Red Sea, as beautiful as it is, is full of poisonous fish and corals, thorough study of the local marine life is strongly encouraged, and the basic rule of thumb "touch nothing" is strongly advisable. Diving outside city limits is prohibited by law and can risk imprisonment in charges related to drug trafficking, which can lead to lengthy imprisonment until the paperwork is completed.

Amusement parks (many of them indoor) are often found near malls or beaches. Many large cities have public parks and small zoos. Horseback riding, camel riding, etc. are also available at horse-racing tracks and some popular beaches. Many upscale hotels provide light activities (especially hotels located along the beaches). These activities are restricted to families only.

Movie theatres are banned in the Kingdom, but DVD shops abound, although the selections are often tame and/or censored. DVDs in Saudi Arabia are invariably Region 2, though bootleg DVDs (which are widely available in smaller video shops) are usually region-free, and often uncensored as well. Satellite TV and downloading entertainment from the Internet is thus very popular.

Video games are an eternal obsession of Saudi youth, and one which is capitalized upon rather well by local retailers. Video game shops are ubiquitous in all of the major cities. Authentic games are offered by most of the larger stores, as US or European imports for an average of c. SAR270 (c. USD$70), while the smaller ones usually only offer bootlegs (which are illegal, but still lucrative enough that almost all sell them) at very low prices of SAR10-15 (USD2.50-4). Wii and Xbox 360 bootlegs reign supreme, but certain stores offer Nintendo DS and PSP games as well, downloaded to a customer's removable media on request.

 

Like all other businesses in Saudi, restaurants are supposed to close during prayer hours, which they usually dim off the lights and refuse service. Jeddah is well-known for its restaurants and cafes which can be found in every corner of every street. While Riyadh restricts its cafes to malls or outside the city. Smoking is banned indoors throughout the country's major cities, this law is very strict and restaurant owners will take it seriously as it risks closing their business. Smoking is allowed in the city in open areas only, which have very pleasant cold winds in winter evenings, but hot humid air (in Jeddah) in summer evenings. Indoor smoking is only allowed outside major cities.

 

Fast food is a huge business in Saudi Arabia, with all the usual suspects (McDonalds, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Subway) and a few chains that rarely venture outside America elsewhere (e.g. Hardee's/Carl's Jr., Little Caesars). Meals invariably served with fries and Coke cost SR10-20.

 

The national Saudi Arabian dish is the Kabsa (orange/red coloured rice with lamb or chicken with strong essence and spices, but not chilli) it is similar to the Indian Briyani but not quite the same.

The Middle Eastern staple of shwarma (doner kebab) is widely available in dedicated little joints, with SAR3-4 being the standard price for a sandwich. The Egyptian mashed fava bean stew foul is another cheap staple, and these shops usually also offer felafel (chickpea balls) and a range of salads and dips like hummus (chickpea paste) and tabbouleh (parsley salad).

Finding restaurants that serve actual Saudi cuisine is surprisingly very difficult, although many larger hotels have Arabic restaurants, they are usually of lower quality. Your local Saudi or expatriate host may be able to show you some places or if you're really lucky, an invitation to dinner at home.

 

With alcohol, nightclubs, cinemas, theatres, playing music in public and mingling with unrelated people of the opposite sex all banned by law, it's fair to say that nobody comes to Saudi Arabia for the nightlife.

 

Pretty much the only form of entertainment for bachelors is the ubiquitous coffee shop, which serve not only coffee and tea, but also snacks. These are strictly a male domain in some cities like Riyadh, while they are very family oriented in Jeddah and surrounding cities.

If, on the other hand, you're looking for a hazelnut frappucino, Starbucks and its legion competitors have established a firm foothold in the Kingdom's malls.

As for the coffee (qahwa) there are two types:

Turkish "black" coffee prepared in the traditional middle eastern way, served in a very small cup called "finjan" usually served with, or without, sugar.

The other type which is strictly found only in Saudi Arabia is the Arabic "white" coffee, made in the traditional Arabic style. Spiced with cardamom (usually), but can contain saffron, cinnamon or ginger, it is strong and tastes great, particularly drunk with dates, also served in a small fingan, which distinctively looks different from the finjan of the Turkish coffee. Arabic coffee never contains sugar. The etiquette is to wiggle the little cup when you are done with the coffee to have it taken.

"Red" Tea (chai), is normal tea, which usually comes with dollops of sugar and perhaps a few mint leaves (na'ana). Green tea is normal herbal tea. All served in tiny cups. Arabs are well known to include sugar in their tea and coffee.

 

Alcoholic beverages are strictly forbidden throughout the country by law, although the police generally turn a blind eye to goings-on inside compounds for foreign expats, where homebrew wine is common. However, if they catch people involved in smuggling or distilling booze in quantity, then expat or not, Saudi law applies. A foreigner may not get the sentence a local would, but can expect a few months in jail, public flogging and whipping, followed by deportation.

There is a local white lightning known among foreigners as "siddiqui" (Arabic for friend) or just as "sid". This is generally horrible-tasting and very potent. In addition to the obvious legal risk, there is a risk of inexpert distilling making it downright poisonous. The stuff is emphatically to be avoided.

Do not drink and drive! is good advice anywhere, but especially in Saudi Arabia. If you have an accident, or otherwise attract police attention, the consequences might be serious indeed.

 

As elsewhere in the Gulf, Saudis are big fans of various fruit juices, ranging from the ordinary (apple, orange) to the downright bizarre (banana-lemon-milk-walnut, anyone?).

Non-alcoholic versions of alcoholic drinks are popular. Two of the most common are Saudi champagne, basically apple juice and Sprite or soda water, and malt beverages, ie. non-alcoholic beer, always sweet and often strongly flavored with mango, strawberry, apple, lemon etc essences. You can even get apple-flavored Budweiser!

 

One of the biggest dangers a visitor to Saudi Arabia faces is the lethal driving (see above, Getting Around - By Car) — drive or pick your drivers carefully and buckle up your seatbelt.

A low-level insurgency which targets foreigners in general and Westerners in particular continues to exist. The wave of violence in 2003-2004 has been squashed by a brutal crackdown by Saudi security forces and there have been no major attacks in the cities for several years, security remains tight yet it is prudent not to draw too much attention to yourself. Foreigners should register their presence with their embassy or consulate. Emergency alert systems using e-mail and cell phone messages are maintained by many governments for their guest workers.

Four French tourists, part of a larger group that had been camping in the desert, were shot and killed by terrorists near Madain Saleh in early 2007. Due to this, optional police escorts — which can be an interesting experience, are sometimes provided for western tourists traveling outside major cities, in areas like Abha, Najran and Madain Saleh. These can be easily arranged through local tourist agents and are not very expensive. Police escorts are trained to be very polite with foreigners, but usually do not speak English.

While Saudi Arabia actually has one of the lowest crime rates in the world due to regular police presence in public, a certain very small background level of non-violent opportunistic theft like pick-pocketing and purse snatching does exist like any other part of the world.

Police in Saudi Arabia are divided into three authorities: Traffic Police (coloured green), General Police (coloured blue), and Special Safety Police (coloured brown). General Police and Special Safety Police are not corrupt and are trained to be friendly and respectful with everyone, they are also very strict in enforcing laws. Traffic Police are generally considered corrupt and lazy. As a result, within the police culture they are considered the lowest level.

Saudi society endeavours to keep men and women separate, yet sexual harassment — leers, jeers and even being followed — is depressingly very common. Unaccompanied women are at a very high risk of kidnapping and sexual harassment by locals and officials.

 

WARNING: LGBT activities are illegal in Saudi Arabia and it is one of the least homosexual friendly countries in the world. First offences attract prison sentences of several months to life, fines with whipping/flogging, castration, torture, vigilante killings and public execution. A second conviction invariably results in execution.

 

Sharia law can bring a visitor into contact with the local police and justice systems. The Saudi justice system (sharia) is notoriously very harsh, and gives no leeway to non-Saudis, and embassies can provide only limited help in these situations. See Respect for how to stay out of trouble.

Saudi Arabia is a monarchy and is headed by the al-Saud dynasty, which is largely respected. Voicing any criticism of the ruling monarchy is frowned upon in Saudi society and may warrant imprisonment. Also, due to the ongoing Israeli-Arab conflict it would be unwise to say anything which could be deemed to be provocative as this is a very sensitive issue.

Although prostitution is illegal in Saudi Arabia, as it follows the Islamic law, it is common but very discreet as punishments are very severe.

 

Visitors to Saudi Arabia are required to respect local conventions, in particular regarding culture. While first-timers in Saudi Arabia are often regaled with tales of beheadings, amputations and whippings, the full harshness of Saudi law is reserved for true criminals like drug smugglers. With a modicum of common sense you'll be just fine, and should a visitor accidentally cause some minor offense, the reaction will generally be amusement rather than anger. But still be reserved.

 

The really important rules to beware of are enshrined in written Saudi law, with criminals subject to the full strength of the infamous Saudi penal system. In addition to obvious crimes like murder (punishable by beheading) and theft (amputation of the hand for repeat offenders), acts considered serious crimes include mixing of unrelated people of the opposite sex, adultery, homosexual activity, and possession of alcohol or drugs.

In practice, though, most visitors will be primarily concerned with the code of morality, involving things like women not covering up properly, and not accompanied by a male guardian, not observing prayer or (during Ramadan) fasting times, etc. These rules are enforced by the infamous muttawa (pl. mutawain), the zealous volunteers of the religious police known as the Committee for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. Confusingly, the exact rules and their enforcement vary greatly both with time and from region to region, with the Nejd region around Riyadh being the most strict, the Eastern Province being moderate, and the Hejaz around Jeddah being the least strict. Some of the time, encounters with the muttawa (especially for non-Muslims) simply results in harsh verbal warnings, but occasionally they may undertake public whipping. The muttawa do have the power to detain those suspected of un-Islamic conduct, but — in theory — must hand them over to the police before interrogation, a law that is sometimes not followed. Reports of human rights abuses and even deaths in muttawa custody are still common.

 

Most areas of life in Saudi Arabia are segregated by sex to ensure that unrelated men and women have no possibility of "mingling" (khulwa, a punishable crime). Under the rules of segregation, all people are divided into three groups:

• Families. The basic unit of Saudi life, families consist of women accompanied by their mahrams (legal male guardians) — father, brother, husband, uncle, nephew — and children.

• Single men (bachelors). Men not accompanied by their families. Despite common use of the word "bachelor", it is irrelevant whether the man is married or not; a husband will dine in the bachelor section at lunch when alone and in the family section at dinner when with his wife. It is against the law to be accompanied anywhere by a woman who is not your wife or a registered family member, and religious police pay particular attention to interracial couples.

• Single women. Women not accompanied by their male guardian. Most of the facilities for families in Jeddah (but not in Riyadh nor the rest of Saudi Arabia) will admit single women. It is against the law to be accompanied anywhere by a man who is not your registered male guardian. The punishment will be worse for the man than for the woman. While the man is forced to sign a written oath not to repeat the offence and may be subject to lashing or imprisonment, women are generally "returned" to their families, with her male guardian having to go through the offence on her behalf.

 

Men:

Locals almost universally wear a thobe (white robe with sleeves) with a ghutra (headdress), but the standard dress code for foreign men in Saudi Arabia is long trousers and a long-sleeved shirt although T-shirts are increasingly common. Shorts are an uncommon sight outside the gym or beach but in most cases it won't get you in trouble nowadays.

Contrary to rumours, men with long hair do not need to cut it before entering the kingdom. Shoulder-length locks are common and many men have long hair in Saudi Arabia. Beduins, which constitute the majority of the population, are well known culturally not to cut their hair, which is usually hidden under the headdress. But some men might get verbal advice from the muttaween if the man's hair is tied, and will usually ask him to untie it, as it is considered feminine to tie hair.

 

Women:

Women, be they local or foreign, are all required to wear an abaya, a long and loose black robe. While a headscarf is optional for non-Saudi females (particularly in Jeddah), one should at least be brought along in order to avoid possible harassment from locals and the religious police or to be used as a means of deflecting attention from potentially aggravating men.

Saudi law prohibits women from mingling with unrelated men. Some family restaurants will go further and will not allow a married couple to dine together with a single man. Women may not drive cars. Women may not even be driven by unrelated men (e.g. taxi drivers).

A woman may not travel alone. They may not stay alone in hotels, hotels will require the presence of a male guardian.

While all this legally applies to foreign women as well, in practice foreign women are not restrained by their families in the way that Saudi women are, and can have considerable leeway if they choose to take it. For example, a foreign woman and her boyfriend (or even male coworker) can simply claim to be husband and wife, and thus mingle freely — although, if caught doing so, they will be subject to a stay in jail.

A single woman accosted by the police or the muttawa and requested to come with them does not have to (and, for their own safety, should not) go with them alone: you have the right to call your male guardian and have him arrive. However, you may be required to surrender your ID, and you may not leave until the police/muttawa allows you to.

 

Photography is probably the easiest way for a visitor to inadvertently get into trouble. Do NOT take pictures of any government-related building (ministries, airports, military facilities etc) or any building that could possibly be one, or you risk being hauled off to jail for espionage, or accused of terrorist plotting. Do not photograph any Saudi men without permission and do NOT even point your camera in the general direction of women, period. Even government publications avoid pictures of people and often resort to mosaicing out faces if there have to use one!

Playing music in public is also prohibited. However, personal music players and listening to music in private is fine, and there are plenty of music shops in the country's shopping malls if you don't mind permanent marker over Britney's hemline on the cover. It is not uncommon to hear young Saudis blasting the latest hip-hop music in their vehicles, at least when the muttawa are not around.

Religious items for religions other than Islam, including Bibles, crucifixes and any religious literature, are forbidden. Anything that hints of proselytism is treated very harshly, and the muttawa often bust illicit church assemblies and the like. Public observance of religions other than Islam is a crime in Saudi Arabia.

The flag of Saudi Arabia bears the Islamic declaration of faith, and desecration or any other inappropriate use of the flag is considered a crime. Any criticism of the King, the royal family or Saudi Arabia's government in general is not tolerated and risks indefinite imprisonment.

 

Internet cafes abound in major Saudi cities, and many shopping malls feature a gaming parlour or two. Rates are around SAR5/hour.

While Internet in Saudi Arabia is cordoned off by a filter, it aims primarily at pornography, non-Islamic religious and domestic political sites in Arabic, and (from the traveller's point of view) is nowhere near as strict as, say, China's. Google, Skype, Wikipedia, all major webmail providers etc are all accessible.