Yanbu Al-Bahr Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia

4 Cruises availables At departure or passage at this port

Emerald Waterways (4 Cruises)


Frequently Asked Questions

In the kingdom's second port after Jeddah, on the eastern shore of the Red Sea. The refineries stretch mostly far to the south; the call itself looks north to the old city, a short shuttle or taxi ride away.
The historic Al-Balad quarter with its shaded souq, the house said to be Lawrence's, then the fish market early morning if the timing works. The corniche in late afternoon rounds out the day.
One of the oldest maritime trading posts in Arabia: coral-stone houses topped with brown mashrabiya screens, around the old fishermen's basin. The tight street pattern keeps the logic of an old trading post: maximum shade and channelled breezes.
T.E. Lawrence is said to have lodged in one of the old quarter's houses, when Yanbu served as a base for the Arab Revolt during the First World War. Residents will happily point out the building and tell the story with pride.
It was a staging post on the route carrying spices and incense from Yemen toward Egypt and the Mediterranean, and long a landing point for pilgrims heading to Medina. Its current industrial profile hides that antiquity.
From coral blocks quarried off the reef, with dark timber beams and openwork balconies that catch the sea breeze. Restored facades reveal the old technique, and restoration continues quarter by quarter.
Dates, incense, fabrics and cardamom coffee, in the shade of the old quarter's lanes. It is neighbourhood trade rather than a tourist bazaar, which is exactly what makes it interesting.
Grouper and trevally landed overnight, under the calls of the auction. The market comes alive at dawn, right beside the old quarter: it is the moment the town shows itself most truly.
Long landscaped promenades punctuated by palms, lawns and playgrounds, running out to small pale-sand beaches. Families settle in late afternoon, and stalls of grilled corn and spiced milk tea scent the evening.
With plain hospitality. People greet you, ask about your country, sometimes offer dates and cardamom coffee for no reason at all. This is an everyday, peaceful Arabia, far from the stock images.