A couple of months ago we set off on a 6-week, 3,000 km road trip along Saudi Arabia's Tomorrowland — aka its west coast — from Jeddah to AlUla, Tabuk, NEOM, Amaala, the Red Sea, Yanbu, and back.
Aside from NEOM's Magna region facing Egypt's Sinai, many of the sites are surprisingly accessible. You can drive along much of NEOM's The Line and really grasp its scale. It makes Cairo's pyramids, 450 km to the east, feel like a Rubik’s Cube. Trojena is another mind-altering construction site.
I highly encourage fellow explorers to take this trip. It will stay in your heart, especially now.
If you're visiting NEOM with time to spare, stay at the Grand Millennium in Tabuk, best hotel in the area. If you need to be inside NEOM, opt for the Royal L'azure. Avoid the very, very down-to-earth L'azure Beach Resort next door or the claustrophobic Hilton.
At the Red Sea Project, go for the excellent St. Regis — as close as it gets to the Maldives, minus the snorkelability. The Ritz-Carlton next door is somewhat depressing, particularly the rooms. We paid in full — no invitations or "influencer" discounts — and neither was worth the money. Rates will drop once the zillion resorts under construction on Shura Island and in Amaala open shortly.
Bottom line: we loved it, and we're on no one's payroll to say this. Saudi Arabia's west coast is all set to become a destination like no other!
You can explore everything we've seen on resortX, and feel free to contribute or ask any questions on the project pages: https://www.resortx.com
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