Jeddah - Private Tour in Al Balad (Jeddah Old town)

Al-Balad district, This is half day experience to tour Al Balad as locals call, it which means “ the town” as reference to the base of Jeddah. 

Al-Balad was founded in the 7th century and historically served as the centre of Jeddah. Al-Balad's defensive walls were torn down in the 1940s. In the 1970s and 1980s, when Jeddah began to become wealthier due to the oil boom, many Jeddawis moved north, away from Al-Balad

Al Balad is registered as a world heritage UNISCO site and since then the old buildings with its unique window designs and doors are being preserved along with its unique buildings which some have been built using sea shells and stones !. The old buildings once housed the famous Jeddah families and hosted the founder the late King Abdulaziz when first entered Jeddah. 

Our tour will go through the history of these building including going inside one of the buildings to see the interior designs , furniture and life back then 

Will also explain the historical importance of some sites and locations while we wonder around the narrow streets to explain how merchants used to sell their goods and how pilgrims used to get their supplies of cloth and food before they head to Makkah through the Makkah Gate in Al Balad.

The old Mosques is another tourist attraction where some were founded over 300 years ago and still functional as a mosque. 

The main attraction in this tour is the food and snacks of Al Balad where we will pass by some famous vendors known to offer the best local snacks such as the local drink made of bread “ Sobia” and the old bakery which its famous for its fresh bread. Another local snack that consist of Bean and pickles “ Balilah”. 

We will stop for rest in one of the local coffee open air places and try famous local tea mixed with milk and herbs  

We will move to visit the center of Al Balad to see the first hotel built in Jeddah influenced by Italian architecture then pass by the first school built in Saudi. We will also visit one of the art houses and museum offering its unique local art collection and antiques. 

During this tour you will pass by many shops where they offer different merchandise such as perfumes, cloth, jewelry , antiques and souvenirs where you can buy and bargain ! we will also introduce you to some local shops to see some crafts being made such as the local sandals , perfumes and gold jewelry crafts. You will pass by different local communities within Al Balad which each community gather for tea and chat , kids playing around and street cats strolling for food ! the Balad spirit 

Finally at the end we will visit one of the local restaurants for dinner and try the famous local dishes such as Kabab , fish or liver with bread !