Where is the best place to stay in Jeddah, KSA?

Question

Where is the best place to stay in Jeddah, KSA?

Answer 1

it depends what's the purpose of your visit and how much budget would you have

the best luxurious hotel is hilton and it is in the kournish

but i always recommend meredien, though it is 4+ or 5- stars and got nothing fancy or extra, but, but really it got the location ..

it is next to a shopping center and you can take a 5 to 10 minutes walk to Tahliya street which is the best and most alive street in jeddah, there are a lot of shops, good brands, cafes and restaurants ..

i know couple of british business people who visit jeddah frequently and always stay there since years .. so i dont think the hotel got any service issue ..

i dont recommend hamra sofitel, it is TOO old

radisson SAS got new swedish type of furniture and great food but the location sucks ..

Marriot, Intercontinental and Crown Plaza are good only if you are planning Umrah. They got easy access to Highways that lead to Makkah.

Answer 2

Wow Soul nice info, I've been in Jeddah for four years and I couldn't recognize some of the places you mentioned! you seem to love this city.

My favorite places... well, you mentioned redsea mall, it's the biggest and most beautiful mall in all Saudi Arabia.

I like to shop for groceries from Danube rawdah district, and for shopping I like Corniche mall in balad.

I go every Friday to Obhur for swimming or snorkeling, I never ridden a jet ski but I'm willing to.

My favorite sea side restaurant is Kanz Obhur, very nice lebanese food and great view on the sea.

I never got on one of these big boats where they offer a 2 hour sea trip with a nice diner, but I'm also willing to do it someday.

I went fishing a couple of times, but let's face it, I don't have it in me! I always get tiny fishes.

By the way I went to Jeddah science museum last year, they had a very nice dinosaur exhibition where you get to know every about them, but I think it's over now.

Two years ago they opened a theater in Sawary mall on kings  road!, the first play was by Ahmad bdair during Eid fiter, it was so funny and I had great time, the next Eid they had a play by CBM cast, you know the show on mbc channel, it was hillarious.

But after that they closed it down :( I have no idea why is that.

Answer 3

ok, i'm a jeddawi (unfortunatley i haven't been to jeddah in a while ) and even though you didn't give us much to work with regarding "best place" to what? or who? here are some pointers:

- if you're a beach person: i would probably suggest Durrat Al-Arous, swimming, diving, boating and jet skiing, lounging at the marina sipping fraps or indulging with a rich creamy ice cone would suit you just well...if you've got some family members or friends that don't enjoy this they can simply go to the carnival, equastrian club, golf corse, tennis and basket ball courts, the gym and entertain themselves. make sure you try out the grilled fish in local fishermen restaurants in the adjacant village: al-anbariyah and sharah are the best...

- another destination could be the cabins and chalets at the Obhur creek, personally i prefer the waters here for swimming, there are many places to rent jet skiis, boats, diving gear and even fishing gear...lots of restaurants around too. tends to get overcrowded during vacations (so we local jeddawis usually prefer to avoid these places when it's packed with tourists from other parts of saudi)

- if you're looking to enjoy the different parts of jeddah may i suggest staying at a hotel by the sea (north corniche area) such as the hilton and Qasr Alsharq (http://www.qasralsharqjeddah.com/english... for a luxury stay with a wonderful view...love thier spa..good restaurants and cafes too...then there's the less fabulos but close by sheraton (http://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/p... , the westin (http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin/pro... )

this area gives you the advantage of getting up and taking a walk by the red sea (there are playgrounds and seatings scattered along the corniche as well as different restaurants, cafes and hookah lounges), a lot of the places have play areas, parks and carnival rides for the kids to enjoy...you can also find the worlds largest Chuck E. Cheese arcade and pizza theatre (http://www.chuckecheeses-sa.com/index/ab... ) and Al-Shallal theme park that includes an ice rink.

another attraction in the north corniche area is the jeddah science and technology center (i haven't been there in 8 years but i really enjoyed it the couple of times i went there before that).

there was this Sea Wonders Aquarium and Star of the Sea Restaurant that was under construction the past two years..not sure if it's operating yet but it would be a must on my list of places to visit.

- shopping malls and centers in jeddah: the list is endless so i'll skim the surface by telling you: head for Tahlia St. where you'll find a whole bunch of malls with luxury designer labels and top european brands as well as food courts and cafes (tahlia center, jeddah mall, roshana mall, basateen center, khayat plaza I & II, promenade, coral mall, le mall, jewlery center, .......) as well as IKEA and serafi mega mall with it's Moon Toon and mens hangout IN10SO with its Car Racing , Bowling , Billiards , Internet Cafe , Climbing Wall and video games(http://www.serafimegamall.net/English/se...

then try the kings road with my favorite: The Red Sea Mall (www.redseamall.com) and the pleseant Roshan mall. there's also the sawary landmark and auto mall if you're interested. ofcourse there are hundreds of malls all over the city such as Jarir Mall, Aziz mall, hera'a mall, elise, jamjoom, sulaimania, south mall...etc so i'm not going to list each and every one here...if you're looking for cheap computer hardware and software (if you know what i mean) then the best destination is city center on madinah road..you can also try Khalid bin Al-waleed St. but city center should do it.

al-balad area with the corniche center and almahmal are also great places for bargain camera equipment and cheap stuff in general...lots of asians (especially philippinos) come here and hang out on the week ends. during hajj, a lot of pilgrims come and set up little huts on the sidewalks to sell some of thier local crafts..with the majority being afghan and russian.

- historical jeddah: you gotta visit the historical district, you'll love the architecture and overall warmth...pay a visit to the museums: Beit Nassif, The Municipality Museum , Abdul Raouf Khalil's Museum and Tai'ybat City (although i heard one of them was damaged by a huge fire a year or two ago), The Castle of Cultural Arts Museum , Islamic Fiqh Academy , the Jeddah Museum and i also know we have a museum about folk art and music somewhere north of jeddah but i can't remember it's name or location...i've been to it once when i was a kid...a loooong time ago.

- one more thing, just walking and driving around jeddah...you'll see many round abouts and sidewalks filled with art and sculptures done by saudi, arab and world famous artists (jeddah held the record for having the largest open air museum), visit the Hamra Corniche as well...you'll get to see the famous fountain...don't miss the bike rides, funky neon lit horse and donkey carriage rides as well...

listen...there's a lot of things to list here and unless i had an idea about your budget and interest i gotta stop typing. good luck and have fun...