This brochure contains travel information for persons who would wish to travel to the City of Riyadh from Toronto. The flight information provides rates from Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) to Riyadh King Khalid International Airport (RUH). It is relatively cheaper to fly by Lufthansa Airlines as their current rates averages $1557 and is less variable. Riyadh is located at approximately 6629 miles north- west of Canada. The city is the capital of Saudi Arabia and serves as the head quarter of Al-Yamamah province. It has a hot and dry climate because it is located in a desert.
The city derives its name from former wadis that dominated the area underlined by a water course. During that time, the place was covered by gardens proliferating orchards and palm trees. Since the wadis dried up, the city planners sunk a number of well to reach zones of permanent saturation in the water table. Ultimately this solves the problems of the Kingdom’s capital. The city is home to modern buildings, in both Arabic designs and contemporary architecture most fitted with state of art equipment and facilities. It is situated in the heart of Arabian Peninsula. Due to its rich history and cultural diversity, the city is listed as one of the world’s leading tourist destinations. It is adequately served with transport network and all necessary means of communication is presently established in the city and its environs.
The main airport that serves the city is the Riyadh’s King Khalid international airport (RUH) which is located approximately 35 kilometers away from the city’s central business district. There are a number of cabs available to transport passengers and their luggage from the airport to the city. The premier airport receives airlines from many parts of the world. The common airlines which operate in the airport include British airways, Lufthansa and Emirates Airlines. The official language is Arabic and because the majority of the natives are Muslims, Islam is the main religion. As the cradle of Islam, the Kingdom is ruled by the Sharia law. There are many tourist attractions that draw many tourists both to the capital and the Kingdom as a whole. The attractions range from ancient architecture to modern self contained malls. The presence of good hotels, villas, and theatres also guarantee visitors suitable accommodation and promotes them to tour Arabia. Some of the attractions identified for an organized group of people visiting the capital for five days are illustrated below. To ensure that the tourist obtain optimal value of their visit, the sites are carefully selected and the schedule arranged to the flexibility of the visitors each day. The attractions selected are: the Al Musmak Castle, the Kingdom’s Tower in Riyadh, Al Murabba’a Palace, Al Dough Park and Riyadh Museum of history and Archeology.
Al Musmak Castle is found along Khazzan Street. It is considered an important part of the city’s history. The Castle was constructed by King Mohammed bin Abdulla bin Rasheed. Later, Riyadh was conquered by King Abdulazziz when he invaded the territory with the help of his military. Since the Al Riyadh Development Authority converted the castle into a museum, it has been more accessible to the public at considerably low fees. Some of the interesting sights at the castle include The Mosque of Al Musmak Castle, The Sitting Place or Saloon, The Watch Towers of Al Musmak Castle, The Well of Al Musmak Castle and The Gate of the Palace. The mosque is one of the oldest mosques in the city. It was established around the time Mecca was being established. It contains prehistoric Islamic literature among other arte facts that were used by the royal family of King Mohammed. The sitting place or Saloon provides a calm and peaceful environment that is essential to recollection activities particularly for group that might still want to be reserved while away from home the castle has four watch towers. At each watch tower, there are abandoned rifles that were used for defense of the city during the reign of King Mohammed. The kingdom of Saudi Arabia holds strongly to its religious teachings. Hence the scheduling off visits to the Castle is set as Sunday for girls while boys go in on Mondays and Wednesday. This arrangement id made for families intending to visit the castle and does not affect everybody.
The Kingdom centre stands to a height of 311metres. This is the tallest building in Saudi Arabia and it is visible from all direction of the city. The tower is built on a 94, 230 square meters land. It belongs to the price of Saudi royal family. It has a approximately 30 floors under the ground. As the land mark of the kingdom it is home to certain envoys and major government offices are situated in this building.
Riyadh Museum of history and Archeology
The museum is a must visit. It showcases local art, religion and culture as well as the diverse and intriguing history of the Arabian Kingdoms. Artifacts such as jewelry, musical instruments including weapons as old as the Stone Age are on display in this museum. The first floor of the museum is a library containing spiritual books and classical writings of the Kingdoms ancient History.
Al Murabba’a Palace
This is a principal component of the King Abdulaziz Darat which comprise of an institute and a library mainly for the purpose of preserving the Arabian history. The palace is situated outside the original city walls some of which were brought down when the kingdom was attacked. It is found on Kanzzat Street.
Al Dough Park. The park is located at Towiak Quarter in western Riyadh. It covers an area of 57,000 square meters. It is fenced by a metallic grill on the outside. On the inside, it is enclosed by an evergreen live fence to make it appeal more to visitors. Green areas cover about 60% of the park region. There is a water pool right at the middle of the park that provides beautiful scenery through its cascading flows. The park has lime lawns, trees and a bright water fountain including playing areas for children. There are fast food shops near by and the sitting area suits both the environment and the location. The garden had adequate parking space which relieves one of the worry for parking space.
While at Riyadh, you can enjoy “Kapsa” (a meal of Chicken and Rice) prepared according to the preference of the Arabs native to Riyadh. Its recipe features olive oil, medium chopped onion, ground cardamom, chicken broth, water, chopped tomatoes and tomato paste, garlic , lemon, cinnamon sticks, boxes of raisins , breast halves package of skinless boneless chicken and thigh bones with basmati rice. The procedure involves baking the chicken in a preheated oven to a bout 300 degrees Fahrenheit. While the chicken is baking the oil is heated in a pot then chopped onions are added to it together with cardamom and keep stirring the mixture when it thickens chicken is added, followed by remaining cardamom, tomato , tomato paste, garlic powder, lemon rind, cinnamon stick, salt and raisins to the browned onions and water. Cooking continues as heat is regulated till both the chicken and rice are fully cooked. The rice and chicken are served simultaneously.
For purposes of accommodation, we chose reservations at Al Faisaliah Hotel which is the most elegant in Riyadh considering its space and number of suits. It is managed by Rosewood Hotel &Resorts. All the rooms feature the present day furnishings, amenities and the latest telecommunication systems. The hotel also offers a 24 hour butler service. The best dining facilities and convenient services made it preferable. We also considered catering for dinner. The total cost per person is $810 per day. The cost includes accommodation meals and entry fees to all the proposed attractions.
There are a number of handicraft and souvenir that one can buy from Riyadh. These include silverware and materials made of gold. Thus jewelry and ornaments are commonly made out of these materials in the city. Fashion designs identical to people of the locality are also available from the shopping malls. These cloths are souvenir since they are bought for use only in certain specific occasions. Musical instruments are sold as souvenirs. Some of the instruments have been used in King’s palace and during important ceremonies in the Kingdom while performing music to the occasions.