Arar City travel guide
Tapline town on the northern steppe near Iraq
Arar is the capital of Saudi Arabia's Northern Borders Province, a pipeline-era town near Iraq. It suits travellers passing through the north. March to April and October to November are most comfortable; one night is enough. Many visitors can buy the Saudi tourist eVisa online or on arrival.
Arar is the capital of the Northern Borders Province, a small administrative city in the far north of Saudi Arabia close to the Iraqi frontier. It grew up in the 1950s around a pumping station on the Trans-Arabian Pipeline, the Tapline, which carried oil across the north towards the Mediterranean.
There is not much to see. The town is a stopover on the northern highway between Rafha and Turaif, or a posting for people working in the provincial government. The surrounding steppe is flat and stony, greening only briefly after winter rain.
Winter is the surprise. Nights in December and January can drop close to freezing, so bring warm layers if you are driving through.
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Not a sightseeing city; a practical stop on the northern road.
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Best time to visit Arar City
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Highs of 24 to 33C, with the steppe at its greenest in spring.
Days around 16 to 19C but lows of 4 to 6C, and most of the year's little rain.
Highs of 39 to 43C and no rain at all from June to September.
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Getting there
Domestic flights and the Tapline highway
Arar Domestic Airport (RAE) is on the edge of town and has only domestic flights, mostly from Riyadh, so visitors from abroad connect there or in Jeddah. Outside the terminal, a taxi or a pre-booked car covers the short ride to the centre; if you are continuing across the north, collect a hire car at the airport instead. By road, Arar sits on the old Tapline highway, the long route that shadows the disused pipeline across the north. Head east and it runs to Rafha and on to Hafar al-Batin; west, it reaches Turaif and then Qurayyat near Jordan. Sakakah, the Al Jawf capital with its ancient sites, is the main destination to the south-west. There is no scheduled train to plan around.
- Airport
- Arar Domestic (RAE), domestic flights mainly from Riyadh
- Highway east
- Tapline road to Rafha and Hafar al-Batin
- Highway west
- Tapline road to Turaif and Qurayyat
- Fuel stations are far apart on the Tapline road; fill up in Arar before every leg.
- Spring dust storms can cut visibility to almost nothing on the open plateau; pull in at a station and wait them out.
Getting around
Taxi in town, car for the north
Arar has no city bus network worth planning around. Distances in the centre are short and traffic is light, so a taxi or ride-hailing car between hotel, government offices and the grills on the main roads rarely takes more than a quarter of an hour, although waits for an app car can be longer than in Riyadh. Hotels will call a taxi for you. For anything beyond the city limits, a rental car is the only realistic option: onward along the highway, or south to Sakakah and the Rajajil columns. Walking is pleasant only from October to April. Between June and September afternoon highs average 40C or more, so keep errands to early morning or after dark.
- Taxi or ride-hailing
- Short hops around the compact centre
- Rental car
- Needed for the highway and Al Jawf
Know before you go
What makes Arar City worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- The spring steppe, when rain brings a short burst of green to the open land around town.
- Pipeline history, in a town that exists because of the Tapline.
- A quiet stop with no tourist crowds.
Good to know
- The Iraqi border is close; stay on main roads and check travel advice.
- Winter nights are cold, which catches many visitors to Saudi Arabia out.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Arar City, month by month
Arar has proper winters: January nights average 4°C under 16°C days. August peaks at 43°C, and November's 12 mm is the wettest month.
Climate figures are approximate long-term averages for Arar (NOAA, via Wikipedia).
An overnight on the Tapline, then south to the Rajajil stones
Arar works best as one night on a drive across the north. Arrive in the afternoon, eat at a charcoal grill, then fill the tank next morning and head south-west to the Rajajil stones near Sakakah, or west towards Qurayyat and Jordan. In winter keep a warm jacket handy, as January lows average 4C.
Arrive in the afternoon, by plane from Riyadh or along the Tapline highway from Rafha, and check into a business hotel in the centre. In the cooler months take an early evening walk while the light goes amber over the flat land at the edge of town, then eat at a local grill where lamb and chicken come off charcoal with bread and salad.
Next morning, fill the tank and buy water and snacks before setting off. The obvious onward route runs south-west to Sakakah, where the Rajajil standing stones and Za'abal Castle make a proper sightseeing day, with Dumat al-Jandal and Marid Castle beyond. Westbound drivers continue to Turaif and Qurayyat for the Jordanian border.
In winter, keep a warm jacket within reach. January lows average 4C here, which surprises people who pack for the Gulf, and early-morning starts can be close to freezing.
Kabsa platters, spring truffles and Gahwa on the northern borders
Arar serves northern Saudi home cooking in plain local restaurants: rice with lamb or chicken, slow-cooked wheat dishes, late-night charcoal grills on the main roads and, after a wet winter, desert truffles in the markets from late winter into spring. Arabic coffee with dates comes wherever people meet.
Kabsa, spiced rice heaped with lamb or chicken, is the everyday centrepiece, and jareesh, cracked wheat slow-cooked with meat or yoghurt, turns up in family kitchens and some traditional restaurants. Charcoal grills line the main roads, serving skewers, half chickens and flatbread late into the night.
After a wet winter, the steppe produces desert truffles (faqa), and from late winter into spring they appear in town markets, piled in sacks and sold by the kilo to locals who fry them with onion or cook them into rice. A dry year means few or none.
Arabic coffee, pale and flavoured with cardamom, is poured in small cups with dates wherever people meet. Accept with the right hand and gently shake the cup when you have had enough. Restaurant choice is narrow by city standards, so eat where the drivers and office workers do.
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How we research our Arar City travel guide
The Arar page is checked against the official Arar City website, Visit Saudi and the Saudi tourist eVisa portal.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Arar City.
General
In the far north of Saudi Arabia, near the Iraqi border. It is the capital of the Northern Borders Province.
An overnight stop for most travellers. The real sightseeing lies to the south-west in Al Jawf.
The main sights of the north are around Sakakah, south-west of Arar: the Rajajil standing stones, Za'abal Castle and, further on, Dumat al-Jandal.
It grew in the 1950s around a pumping station on the Trans-Arabian Pipeline (Tapline), which carried oil across northern Arabia toward the Mediterranean.
Arar has no city bus network worth planning around. Distances in the centre are short and traffic is light, so a taxi or ride-hailing car between hotel, government offices and the grills on the main roads rarely takes more than a quarter of an hour, although waits for an app car can be longer than in Riyadh. Hotels will call a taxi for you.
Getting there
By air if you are coming from Riyadh, which has most of the flights into Arar Domestic Airport (RAE). Drivers reach it on the Tapline highway between Rafha and Turaif.
March to April and October to November, when highs sit between about 24 and 33C, clear of both the cold winter nights and the summer heat.
Not practically. Taxis and ride-hailing cover short hops in town, but the highway to Al Jawf needs a rental car.
Arar Domestic Airport (RAE) is on the edge of town and has only domestic flights, mostly from Riyadh, so visitors from abroad connect there or in Jeddah. Outside the terminal, a taxi or a pre-booked car covers the short ride to the centre; if you are continuing across the north, collect a hire car at the airport instead. By road, Arar sits on the old Tapline highway, the long route that shadows the disused pipeline across the north.
Timing & weather
They can. January averages a high of 16C and a low of 4C, so pack a proper jacket.
On average, not at all. July and August highs reach 42 to 43C, so drive early and carry water.
The best time to visit Arar City is Mar to Apr, Oct to Nov. Between cold winters and hot summers.
- Best overall: March - April, October - November (Highs of 24 to 33C, with the steppe at its greenest in spring)
- Winter: December - February (Days around 16 to 19C but lows of 4 to 6C, and most of the year's little rain)
- Summer: June - September (Highs of 39 to 43C and no rain at all from June to September)
Stay & facilities
Lamb or chicken kabsa, jareesh and charcoal grills, with desert truffles in the markets in spring after a rainy winter.
Visa & documents
A one-year multiple-entry tourist eVisa is available online or on arrival to citizens of many countries, including the UK, the EU, the US, Canada and Australia, and holders of valid US, UK or Schengen visas may also qualify. Umrah is allowed on a tourist visa outside Hajj season; Hajj needs a special visa.
Health & safety
Crime is low, but laws are strict and penalties severe, including for drugs and alcohol. Regional tensions can affect travel; check advice for areas near the Yemen border.
