Today is the kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s 90th birthday! Green is the patriotic color. Most people have the day off. In fact most have an extended weekend with Wed through Sat off.
What do folks plan to do at this time? Last year I believe they had a few fireworks over at the Corniche. Cars were backed up in long lines beeping and waving Saudi flags. In the past this type of gathering was not allowed, however things are changing. Here’s another look at Saudi Vision 2030! So what exactly is Saudi National Day? The below information is taken from Wego.com.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will celebrate the 90th iteration of its National Day on 23 September 2020. The National Day (اليوم الوطني— al-Yaum al-Wathani) commemorates the unification of the various Bedouin tribes, sultanates, minor kingdoms and emirates across a large area of the Arabian Peninsula stretching from the Red Sea to the Persian Gulf.
In the year 1932, the land was finally unified under the banner of Abdul Al-Aziz ibn Saud, the founding father of Saudi Arabia, who then proceeded to assume the mantle of the Kingdom’s first king as well as the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.
Although steeped in history, the National Day has only been officially recognized as a national holiday to be celebrated in a festive manner since the year 2005. Previously, only religious holidays were celebrated in Saudi Arabia, namely the Eid al-Fitr and the Eid al-Adha.”
Wego.com, Wego Travel, 2020
Covid 19 restrictions still keep travel to a minimum. If you want to leave the country you can, however getting back in requires a 48 hour Covid test for all people 10 years and older. There aren’t that many countries that will accept tourists anyhow, and if they do, you will need quarantine time at destination and then once back in Saudi.
Saudi might very well see an uptick in tourism within it’s borders. It’s easy to get to Riyadh, Medina and Jeddah, a very popular destination as it’s on the Red Sea. The only places outside of Saudi that really depend on tourism are the Maldives, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines, none of which are close, but one can travel to.
Looks like we’ll be staying around and see what we can do in the Eastern Province!
Date Palms & Camels 