Khamis Mushait travel guide
Asir's trading city next to Abha, with more beds in high summer
Khamis Mushait is the big commercial city beside Abha on the Asir plateau. It has few sights but plenty of hotels and restaurants, which makes it a sensible base for the mountains from June to September. Stay one night, or longer as a base. Costs are high, and many nationalities qualify for the eVisa on arrival.
Khamis Mushait sits just east of Abha on the Asir plateau, and it is the bigger, busier of the two. The name means the Thursday market of Mushait, and trade is still its business: it has long counted among the kingdom's larger trading centres. It is also home to a major military airbase.
There is little to see as such; the King Fahad Mosque is the main landmark. The city earns its place as a practical base. Hotel choice is wider than in Abha at the summer peak, the shared airport sits between the two, and evenings revolve around restaurants such as Pepper House on King Fahd Road, with its showy desserts.
Al Karkand in An Nuzhah is the pick for seafood, and Maharani covers Indian food. By day, Al-Soudah, Rijal Almaa and the rest of the Asir highlands are easy trips by car.
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Restaurants, shopping and easy access to the Asir highlands.
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Best time to visit Khamis Mushait
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Highs of only 30-32C on the plateau, with short afternoon showers in July and August; the right time for Al-Soudah and Rijal Almaa.
Clear days around 22-24C, but nights drop to about 9C, so pack a warm layer.
Hotels across Abha and Khamis Mushait fill in July and August, so book well ahead.
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Getting there
Shared airport and the long road
Khamis Mushait has no airport or railway of its own. Flights land at Abha International, which sits on the plateau between Abha and Khamis Mushait and serves both, with regular domestic services from Riyadh and Jeddah. From the terminal it is a short taxi or app ride into Khamis; there is no airport bus worth relying on. No passenger train reaches Asir, so the alternative to flying is the road. Riyadh is about 884 km away, a full day's drive, while from the Red Sea side you climb up through Abha on steep escarpment roads.
- Airport
- Abha International (AHB), between Abha and Khamis Mushait; taxi or app car
- Rail
- None in Asir
- From Riyadh
- About 884 km by road, a full day's driving
- From Abha
- Next door to the west, a short drive
- Collect a hire car at the airport if the highlands are on your list; paying taxis for whole days adds up fast.
- Flights from Riyadh and Jeddah fill with families escaping the summer heat in July and August, so book them early.
Where to stay
Beds near King Fahd Road and Al Muntazah
Stay near the Abha road for quicker mountain trips, or around King Fahd Road to be close to dinner. Khamis Mushait has no tourist quarter, with hotels and furnished apartments spread along the commercial roads, and most visitors end up here because Abha is full or dearer in July and August.
- Al Muntazah
- The Mercure, with an indoor pool; a solid choice for families staying several nights
- Al Humaylah and King Fahd Road
- Restaurants such as Pepper House nearby; traffic is heavy on summer evenings
- An Nuzhah
- Residential, with seafood at Al Karkand; quieter but fewer hotels
- Abha
- The alternative base next door, closer to Al-Soudah but harder to book in peak summer
- Ask for a room away from the main road; commercial streets stay noisy until late in summer.
Getting around
Apps in town, a car for the mountains
Khamis Mushait is a sprawl of wide commercial roads such as King Fahd Road, and nothing is laid out for walking between districts. App cars and taxis handle short trips around town and the hop across to Abha. The highlands need a car. The roads up to Al-Soudah and down the escarpment to Rijal Almaa are steep, with tight bends, and cloud often settles over the summits in the afternoon, cutting visibility to a few metres. Set off in the morning and allow more time than the map suggests.
- Ride-hailing
- Easiest for town and for trips to Abha
- Car hire
- Desks at Abha airport; needed for Al-Soudah and Rijal Almaa
- Mountain roads
- Steep bends and afternoon fog; drive them in daylight
- Keep clear of the airbase perimeter and never stop beside it to take photos.
Know before you go
What makes Khamis Mushait worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- Pepper House on King Fahd Road, for the over-the-top desserts.
- Easy day trips to Al-Soudah and Rijal Almaa.
- Cool summer evenings on the plateau.
Good to know
- Do not photograph the military airbase or other military sites.
- Book early for July and August, when the whole region fills up.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Khamis Mushait, month by month
Khamis Mushait's highland position caps June at 32°C, and January runs 22°C by day and 9°C at night. April is wettest, with about 36 mm.
Climate figures are approximate long-term averages for Khamis Mushait (NOAA, via Wikipedia).
Two days from a Khamis Mushait base
Khamis Mushait works as a two-day base for the Asir highlands. Spend the first on the Al-Soudah ridge and in central Abha, the second on the slow road down to the stone tower houses of Rijal Almaa, and come back each night to the restaurants on King Fahd Road and in An Nuzhah.
On the first morning, drive up to Al-Soudah early, before the cloud rolls over the summit, and walk among the juniper trees along the ridge where the plateau drops away towards the Tihama lowlands. Come down for lunch in Abha, then spend the afternoon walking the older streets of central Abha. Back in Khamis Mushait, dinner at Pepper House on King Fahd Road means American plates and desserts built to be photographed.
Day two goes down the escarpment to Rijal Almaa, the village of stone tower houses trimmed with white quartz that once sat on a trade route to the coast. Its museum is in one of the restored towers. The road is slow and twisting, so give it most of the day and climb back up before dark. Finish with seafood at Al Karkand in An Nuzhah, or curry at Maharani if you have had enough grilled fish.
Pepper House, Haneeth and Asir honey
Khamis Mushait has more restaurants than Abha, and three regulars cover most moods: Pepper House for burgers and outsized desserts, Al Karkand for fish, prawns and calamari, Maharani for Indian food. For Asir cooking, order haneeth or areeka at a traditional place, and take home mountain honey.
Summer evenings are when the restaurants fill, with families staying out late in the cool air.
Look further for the cooking of the south-west. Haneeth is lamb slow-roasted until it falls apart, served on rice, and it is the dish to order at a traditional place. Areeka is a dense, warm dough mashed with ghee and honey, sometimes with dates, eaten from a shared bowl at breakfast or as a sweet.
Honey is the souvenir. Beekeepers in the Asir mountains produce some of the most prized honey in the kingdom, sold in jars by grade and flower source in specialist shops around town; ask to taste before you buy, as quality and price vary a great deal. Arabic coffee with dates is offered almost everywhere you sit down.
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How we research our Khamis Mushait travel guide
For Khamis Mushait we use the city's official 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 Khamis Mushait.
General
Hotel choice is wider and easier to book in peak summer, the restaurants are good, and the airport and the highlands are just as close.
June to September. At around 2,000 m the city tops out near 32C in July, while Riyadh and the Red Sea coast swelter.
Haneeth, slow-roasted lamb on rice, and areeka, dough mashed with ghee and honey. Mountain honey is the souvenir to take home.
No. Photographing the King Khalid Air Base or any military site is forbidden, so keep cameras away from the perimeter.
Khamis Mushait is a sprawl of wide commercial roads such as King Fahd Road, and nothing is laid out for walking between districts. App cars and taxis handle short trips around town and the hop across to Abha. The highlands need a car.
Getting there
It is the neighbouring city just to the east, and Abha International Airport lies between the two.
No. Fly into Abha or drive; Riyadh is about 884 km away by road.
About 884 km by road, a full day of driving. Most people fly into Abha instead.
Khamis Mushait has no airport or railway of its own. Flights land at Abha International, which sits on the plateau between Abha and Khamis Mushait and serves both, with regular domestic services from Riyadh and Jeddah. From the terminal it is a short taxi or app ride into Khamis; there is no airport bus worth relying on.
Timing & weather
A short taxi or app ride: the airport sits on the plateau between Abha and Khamis Mushait.
Quite possibly. Short afternoon showers are common, adding about 23-29 mm a month, and nights fall to around 18C.
The best time to visit Khamis Mushait is Jun to Sep. Mild summer weather at altitude.
- Best overall: June - September (Highs of only 30-32C on the plateau, with short afternoon showers in July and August; the right time for Al-Soudah and Rijal Almaa)
- Winter: December - February (Clear days around 22-24C, but nights drop to about 9C, so pack a warm layer)
Booking
Two or three nights as a base: one day for Al-Soudah and Abha, one for Rijal Almaa, and a spare day if the fog closes in.
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.
