| Al Qassim Date Festival | |
|---|---|
| Status | active |
| Frequency | Annually |
| Location(s) | Al-Qassim Region of Saudi Arabia |
Al Qassim Date Festival is the largest date festival in the world held annually in the central Al Qassim region of Saudi Arabia. [1] It is estimated that about 300,000 tonnes of dates are sold annually. [1] The festival is also accompanied by heritage activities that attract visitors from neighboring countries. [2] Saudi Arabia has the highest number of palm trees in the world representing around 25% of the world's date production. Al Qassim region, where the festival is held, has more than 8 million palm trees. [3]
Riyadh is the capital of Saudi Arabia and the largest city on the Arabian Peninsula. With a population of 6.9 million people, Riyadh is the third-largest city in the Arab world and the 39th-largest in Asia. Riyadh is located on the eastern part of the Najd plateau at about 600 metres (2,000 ft) above sea level.
Phoenix dactylifera, commonly known as date or date palm, is a flowering plant species in the palm family, Arecaceae, cultivated for its edible sweet fruit. Although its exact place of origin is uncertain because of long cultivation, it probably originated from the Fertile Crescent region straddling between Egypt and Mesopotamia. The species is widely cultivated across Northern Africa, the Middle East, the Horn of Africa and South Asia, and is naturalized in many tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. P. dactylifera is the type species of genus Phoenix, which contains 12–19 species of wild date palms, and is the major source of commercial production.
Al-Qassim Region, also spelled Qassim, Al-Qaseem, Al-Qasim, or Gassim internationally, is one of the thirteen administrative regions of Saudi Arabia. Located at the heart of the country, and almost in the center of the Arabian Peninsula, it has a population of 1,370,727 and an area of 58,046 km². It is known to be the "alimental basket" of the country, for its agricultural assets.
Tabuk, also spelled Tabouk, is the capital city of the Tabuk Region in northwestern Saudi Arabia. It has a population of 910,030. It is close to the Jordanian–Saudi Arabia border, and houses the largest air force base in Saudi Arabia.
Buraydah is the capital of Al-Qassim Region in northcentral Saudi Arabia in the heart of the Arabian Peninsula. Buraydah lies equidistant from the Red Sea to the west and the Persian Gulf to the east. It has a population of 614,093.
Unaizah or officially The Governorate of Unaizah is a Saudi Arabian city in the Al Qassim Province. It lies south of the province capital Buraydah and north of Riyadh, the capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is the second largest city in Al-Qassim Province with a population of 163,729.
Al-Jenadriyah is a cultural and heritage festival held in Jenadriyah near Riyadh in Saudi Arabia each year, lasting for two weeks. " King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz was the first to organize this festival. He fostered it and developed it to become the top Arab festival that showcases the local heritage of all Arabian Peninsula regions as well as the Saudi Arabian heritage"
Al-Hofuf is the major urban center in the Al-Ahsa Oasis in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. It is also known for being one of the largest date producers in the world, and for its old souks and palaces.
Sheikh Saleh Abdul Aziz Al Rajhi was a businessman and philanthropist from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He was the founder of Al-Rajhi Bank, the largest Islamic banking institution.
Al-Bahah is a city in the west of Saudi Arabia in the Hejaz area. It is the capital of Al Bahah Region, and is one of the Kingdom's prime tourist attractions. It enjoys a pleasant climate and is surrounded by more than forty forests, including Raghdan, al Zaraeb and Baidan. Al Baha is the headquarters of the Governor, local councils and branches of governmental departments. Receiving the state's special attention, the city of Al Baha abounds in educational, tourist and health institutions. It is considered the capital of the Ghamdi and Zahrani tribes in Saudi Arabia, and most of its inhabitants are from the native tribes.
Bisha, also known as Qal`at Bishah, is a town in the south-western Saudi Arabian province, 'Asir. Bisha was its own province before merging with its neighboring province, 'Asir. Bisha has a population of 205,346 according to the 2010 Census, with nearly 240 villages and 58 larger settlements that are spread out on both sides of the Bisha Valley. The city is located to the south of the Arabian Peninsula, which is almost entirely under the administration of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It stands at an altitude of approximately 610 meters (2,000 ft.) above sea level.
Al-Aḥsāʾ, also known as al-Ḥasāʾ or Hajar, is a traditional oasis historical region in eastern Saudi Arabia whose name is used by the Al-Ahsa Governorate, which makes up much of that country's Eastern Province. The oasis is located about 60 km (37 mi) inland from the coast of the Persian Gulf.
Hun or Houn is an oasis town in the northern Fezzan region of southwest Libya. The town is the capital of the Jufra District. The "International Autumn Tourism Festival", is an annual festival usually held at the end of September.
Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz International Airport, formerly Qassim International Airport and widely known in the air-travel industry as "Gassim", is an airport in the Mulayda district west of Buraydah, Saudi Arabia. It primarily serves the region in addition to the neighbor provinces of Hail and Riyadh. Currently, 11 airlines serve the airport with 15 destinations in 5 countries.
Saudi Arabia is the second biggest tourist destination in the Middle East with over 16 million visiting in 2017. Although most tourism in Saudi Arabia still largely involves religious pilgrimages, there is growth in the leisure tourism sector. As the tourism sector has been largely boosted lately, the sector is expected to be the white oil for Saudi Arabia. This is proved as tourism sector is expected to generate $25 billion in 2019. Potential tourist areas include the Hijaz and Sarawat Mountains, Red Sea diving and a number of ancient ruins.
Al-Ra'ed is a Saudi football club based in Buraidah, and the first of its kind in the Qassim region of Saudi Arabia. One of the club's notable founders is Abdulaziz Al-Obodi. Established in 1954, Al-Raed currently play in the Pro League and have been playing there since 2008.
The Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTH) is a governmental body concerned with tourism and national heritage of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is focused on encouraging and supporting domestic tourism through sponsoring and conducting tourism events across the country and overcoming obstacles to growth of tourism.
Saudi Arabian art should be understood in the light of the country being the birthplace of Islam and to include both the arts of Bedouin nomads and those of the sedentary peoples of regions such as the Hejaz, Tihamah, Asir and Najd.
The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture(Ithra) also known as Ithra, in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, developed by Saudi Aramco and inaugurated by King Salman bin Abdulaziz on 1 December 2017. Ithra is located in the same place of which the first Saudi discovered oilfield. The Center incorporates a museum, children museum, library, cinema, theater, and exhibition halls. The Norwegian architectural firm Snohetta designed the building and BuroHappold led the multi-discipline engineering design. The center has been listed in Time magazine as the world’s top 100 places to visit. The Director of Ithraa is Ali Al-Mutairi.
Winter at Tantora Festival is an annual festival held in the old town of Al-Ula, Medina which is located in northwestern in Saudi Arabia. The festival has begun on December 21, 2018, and was running a series of eight-weekend concerts for world-class musicians. in addition to this, the festival also features other activities and events. The second version festival will start on 19 December 2019.
