Khobar travel guide
A 16 km corniche, Half Moon Bay and the causeway to Bahrain
Khobar is the most relaxed of the Gulf-coast trio with Dammam and Dhahran, with a 16 km corniche, big malls and beaches at Half Moon Bay. November to March is best. Two or three days covers the city, Dhahran next door and a beach afternoon. Prices are high, and many nationalities get a tourist eVisa online or on arrival.
Al Khobar is the seaside end of the Dammam metropolitan area on Saudi Arabia's Gulf coast, sharing the conurbation with Dammam and Dhahran. Its corniche runs for some 16 km along the shore, and the King Fahd Causeway to Bahrain begins just outside town.
The Dawasir founded the town in 1923, and it grew fast once oil was found, serving as Saudi Aramco's export port in the company's early years. Trade has always been the local habit. Suwaiket Street, officially Prince Bandar bin Abdulaziz Street, still has some of the oldest markets in the city, while the Mall of Dhahran and Al Rashid Mall pull the evening crowds.
Evenings are when it wakes up. The seafront has proper footpaths and the Khobar Water Tower as its landmark. South of town, Half Moon Bay has beaches, resorts and dunes where locals rent ATVs by the hour.
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Top things to do in Khobar
Seafront walks, old market streets, big malls and beaches to the south.
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Best time to visit Khobar
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Warm days, cool evenings and the corniche at its liveliest.
Very hot and humid; life moves into the malls after dark.
Weekends bring visitors over the causeway from Bahrain, so expect long border queues and busy malls.
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Getting there
Landing at DMM or Manama, then the expressway south
King Fahd International (DMM) is out in the desert north-west of Dammam, and nothing on rails connects it to Khobar. Take a taxi from the official rank or book Uber or Careem; the run down the expressways takes roughly 45 minutes to an hour, longer at the evening rush. Plenty of business travellers fly into Bahrain instead, since it has more direct routes, and cross the King Fahd Causeway by car or bus. Passport control sits on an artificial island halfway over the water, and on a quiet day you reach southern Khobar about an hour after leaving Manama. Overland from Riyadh, trains run via Hofuf to Dammam station, 15 minutes from Khobar by taxi, and SAPTCO runs VIP coaches straight into town.
- King Fahd International (DMM)
- Taxi, Uber or Careem, about 45-60 minutes
- Bahrain International (BAH)
- Car or SABTCO bus over the causeway, about an hour
- Train from Riyadh
- To Dammam station via Hofuf, then 15 minutes by taxi
- Coach
- SAPTCO VIP services direct from Riyadh
- Avoid crossing the causeway on Thursday evening or Saturday night, when weekend traffic backs up at the border posts.
- Ask your hotel where the SABTCO office is; taxi drivers know it, but it is not obvious on maps.
Where to stay
Seafront towers, Suwaiket lanes or the Half Moon Bay resorts
Where you sleep decides how much time you spend in cars. The corniche hotels put the sea path outside the door and suit a first visit. Rooms around the old commercial grid near Suwaiket Street cost less and taxis pass constantly, but the streets are noisy and the buildings older. Business travellers often pick the low-rise hotels on Old Airport Road at the northern edge, which are quiet and have pools, yet nothing is walkable from there. The beach resorts at Half Moon Bay are for a few days of sand, a long drive from the malls.
- Corniche
- Sea views and the evening promenade; slow traffic on weekend nights
- Suwaiket Street area
- Older, cheaper hotels and easy cabs; busy and loud
- Old Airport Road
- Quiet pool hotels on the northern edge; you need a car
- Half Moon Bay
- Beach resorts south of the city, far from shops and restaurants
Getting around
Cabs downtown, your own wheels for the southern coast
Khobar has no metro or tram, and it stretches a long way down the coast and inland toward Dhahran, so plan every outing around a car. In the centre, between Suwaiket Street and the corniche, taxis cruise often and a hotel or compound can call one within 5 to 10 minutes. In the southern districts they are scarce. Uber and Careem cover the whole metro area and fix the fare before you set off; Dhahran is about 7 minutes away and Dammam 15 to 20. For Half Moon Bay and the dunes, rent a car for the day. Walking makes sense in short stretches: the corniche path after sunset and the shop streets around Suwaiket, not between malls.
- Uber and Careem
- The simplest choice for most trips
- Taxi
- Plentiful downtown, scarce in the suburbs
- Rental car
- Best for Half Moon Bay and the dunes
- On foot
- Corniche and Suwaiket Street in the evening
Know before you go
What makes Khobar worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- The corniche at dusk, with the Water Tower lit up and families picnicking by the sea.
- Suwaiket Street, the old market street where Khobar's merchant past still shows.
- ATVs on the dunes around Half Moon Bay, rented by the hour from local operators.
Good to know
- ATV operators rarely speak English; agree the price and time before you set off.
- Causeway queues to Bahrain get long at weekends; cross midweek if you can.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Khobar, month by month
Month-by-month climate figures for Khobar are being researched.
Suwaiket mornings, Corniche evenings and a day down the coast
Two days suit Khobar. Spend the first between the stalls of Suwaiket Street, a cool mall at midday and the corniche at sunset; on the second, choose the beach and dunes of Half Moon Bay or a half day at Ithra in Dhahran, then drive out along the causeway for the view over the Gulf.
Start the first morning on Suwaiket Street, before the shopkeepers close for the midday break, and poke through the fabric, perfume and electronics stalls that have traded here since the town's early oil years. When the heat builds, retreat to Al Rashid Mall or across the boundary to the Mall of Dhahran.
Late afternoon belongs to the corniche. Walk south toward the Water Tower as families spread rugs on the grass, and stop at a seafront cafeteria for shay with mint.
On day two, pick one of two directions. Drive south to Half Moon Bay for a beach morning and an hour on an ATV in the dunes. Or spend the day in Dhahran at Ithra, the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, which needs at least half a day. Finish with the drive out along the causeway for the view over the Gulf, turning back before the border if you have no Bahraini visa.
Shawaya spits, Gulf hamour and shay by the corniche
Eat chicken shawaya, lamb kabsa and Gulf hamour in Khobar, then branch out. The city's trading past and huge foreign workforce mean one street can hold a Yemeni mandi house, a Kerala canteen and a Lebanese grill, and the South Asian kitchens near the old centre are the best value in town.
The local staple is chicken shawaya, birds turned on spits and served over spiced rice, and kabsa with lamb is the dish families order for a gathering. Being on the Gulf, fish is the thing to seek out: hamour grilled or fried, and prawns, sold at the seafood restaurants along and behind the corniche.
Their biryani and curries are cooked for the people who come from those countries.
Drinking means tea and coffee. Cafeterias pour shay sweet, often with mint or milk, and Arabic coffee scented with cardamom comes with dates. Alcohol is illegal across the kingdom and pork is not served.
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How we research our Khobar travel guide
We check Khobar's corniche, transport and visa notes against the official Khobar 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 Khobar.
Timing & weather
Allow 45 minutes to an hour by taxi, Uber or Careem from DMM, more at the evening rush; no train or metro serves the airport.
The best time to visit Khobar is Nov to Mar. Warm days and comfortable evenings on the corniche.
- Best overall: November - March (Warm days, cool evenings and the corniche at its liveliest)
- Summer: June - September (Very hot and humid; life moves into the malls after dark)
General
Often, yes. Bahrain International has more direct routes, and the drive over the King Fahd Causeway to Khobar takes about an hour when the border is quiet.
November to March, when days are warm and comfortable. From June to September the Gulf humidity keeps people indoors until well after dark.
Yes, if each gets its own day: Suwaiket Street and the corniche first, Ithra in Dhahran or Half Moon Bay second, then Bahrain over the causeway on the third.
Downtown, easily. For Half Moon Bay and the outer districts a rental car is far simpler.
The corniche for sea views and evening walks; Suwaiket Street for older shops and easy taxis. Pick a Half Moon Bay resort only if the beach is the point of the trip.
Hamour, the local grouper. Pair it with chicken shawaya or lamb kabsa, and look for biryani in the South Asian places near the old centre.
Yes. Operators south of town around Half Moon Bay rent ATVs by the hour for the dunes and beach. Agree the time and price before riding, as few speak English.
Khobar has no metro or tram, and it stretches a long way down the coast and inland toward Dhahran, so plan every outing around a car. In the centre, between Suwaiket Street and the corniche, taxis cruise often and a hotel or compound can call one within 5 to 10 minutes. In the southern districts they are scarce.
Getting there
Yes. SABTCO runs coaches several times a day from its office in central Khobar, crossing the causeway in about an hour. You need a Bahraini visa or eligible passport.
Yes, about 15 minutes from Khobar by taxi, with trains running to Riyadh via Hofuf. SAPTCO VIP coaches are the road alternative.
King Fahd International (DMM) is out in the desert north-west of Dammam, and nothing on rails connects it to Khobar. Take a taxi from the official rank or book Uber or Careem; the run down the expressways takes roughly 45 minutes to an hour, longer at the evening rush. Plenty of business travellers fly into Bahrain instead, since it has more direct routes, and cross the King Fahd Causeway by car or bus.
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.
