Location and borders
The Tabuk Region lies in the northwest of Saudi Arabia, one of the Kingdom's thirteen administrative regions. Jordan borders it to the north, the al-Jouf and Hail regions to the east, the Madinah Region to the south, and the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea to the west, making it the only region in the Kingdom that faces two bodies of water.
It covers about 136,000 km², roughly 6.9% of the Kingdom, the fifth-largest region by area. Known as "Tabuk al-Ward" (Tabuk of the roses) and the "Gateway to the North", it has Tabuk city as its administrative capital, in the region's northeastern part.
Population
The region had 886,036 residents in the 2022 Saudi census, about 2.8% of the Kingdom's population, which makes it the eighth most populous region, with a density of about six people per km². Some 24.8% of residents live on the coast.
Most live in Tabuk city, the largest city and governorate in the region by both area and population, with 623,665 residents in the 2022 census, or 70.4% of the regional total.
Emirate and governorates
The Emirate of the Tabuk Region was established in 1925 (1344 AH), after the unification of the Kingdom; its first governor was Mohammed bin Abdulaziz al-Shuhail, from 1344 to 1349 AH. Prince Fahd bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz has been governor since 1987 (1407 AH), and on 12 December 2023 a Royal Order appointed Prince Khalid bin Saud bin Abdullah bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz deputy governor with excellent rank. The Emirate sits on King Abdullah Road in Tabuk city, about 8 km from the airport.
Besides Tabuk city, the region has six governorates, classified under the Law of Provinces issued in 1992 and amended by Royal Decree in 1994: al-Wajh, Duba and Tayma in Category A, and Umluj, Haql and al-Bad' in Category B. All of them except Tayma are on the sea: Haql on the Gulf of Aqaba, the rest on the Red Sea.
Terrain and climate
Some one hundred islands belong to the region, with coral, sandy, continental and volcanic ecosystems. The climate differs between the coast and the interior; rain falls only in winter, when temperatures can drop to zero, while summer temperatures pass 40°C.
Within NEOM, northeast of al-Bad' Governorate and about 200 km northwest of Tabuk city, rises Jabal al-Lawz, named after its almond trees. At 2,549 m above sea level it is the highest of the Midian Mountains, its loftiest peak being Jabal Fayhan. Its granite massif is ringed mostly by sand, and its slopes feed Wadi Afal, Wadi Reem and Wadi al-Abyad.
Snow covers Jabal al-Lawz almost every winter, drawing residents, hikers and adventure seekers. Traces of several ancient civilisations have been recorded there: rock drawings, some dating to about 10,000 BCE, ancient inscriptions and Islamic writings.
A long history
The Thamud, Nabataeans and Arameans all lived here, and ancient Greek and Thamudic inscriptions record the old names Tabu or Tabuwa. Tabuk carried the name Tabu when it and al-Ula were the capital of the Lihyanites, and it lay on the caravan route between the south of the Arabian Peninsula and the north.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) led the Expedition of Tabuk, also called the Expedition of al-Usrah, to confront the Romans; afterwards Tabuk became an important part of the Islamic state and a gateway to the Levant. Al-Tawbah Mosque marks where the Prophet prayed during the nights of the expedition. First built of clay and roofed with palm fronds, it was rebuilt on the order of King Faisal bin Abdulaziz on the model of the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah. Nearby is Ain al-Sukkar, one of the region's oldest springs, where the Prophet is said to have stayed for about ten nights.
The Hejaz Railway, which linked Madinah with Damascus and was destroyed in the First World War, reached Tabuk with the first train in 1906. The station's group of buildings has recently been restored as a regional landmark.
Landmarks and archaeology
Tabuk Castle was a station on the Levant pilgrim road to Madinah and was restored in 1653, 1844, 1951, 1993 and 2013. It is now a two-storey museum with an open courtyard, a well, a mosque and guard towers, with the two Sultanic Ponds, one square and one rectangular, behind it. The region also holds the Shuaib ruins from the Nabataean era and the ad-Disah mountains, whose sandstone columns were shaped by wind and water and carry Thamudic and Nabataean inscriptions.
Southeast of Tabuk city lies Tayma. Its oldest remains go back to the Neolithic, about 12,000 years ago; in the Iron Age it became one of the most important cities of the northern Arabian Peninsula, and inscriptions from the eighth and sixth centuries BCE record that a Babylonian king made it his capital. Its monuments include the outer wall built in the sixth century BCE, al-Rudhm Palace from the mid-first millennium BCE, the Haddaj Well from the early first millennium BCE, the Abbasid-era al-Bajidi Palace, al-Hamra Palace, the al-Ablaq Palace of al-Samaw'al, and the Palace of King Abdulaziz.
A human bone about 90,000 years old was found at Tayma in 2016, as was a fossilised elephant tusk estimated at more than 500,000 years. Its pottery and carvings bear cuneiform, Thamudic, Aramaic, Nabataean and early Islamic Arabic script. The Aramaic-inscribed Tayma Stone was taken to France in 1884 and is displayed at the Louvre in Paris; the Tayma Museum covers the periods from prehistory through the Stone and Bronze Ages to the rise of Islam.
Coast and beaches
Duba, 185 km from Tabuk city, is known for coral reefs and sandy beaches, among them al-Sajdah, al-Muwailih, Sharma, al-Khuraibah and Qayal; part of NEOM is at Sharma.
Haql sits on the Gulf of Aqaba, 220 km northwest of Tabuk city, looking across to Egypt and Jordan, with reefs suited to swimming and water sports; its beaches include al-Qufayf, Haql, Umm Anam, al-Subhan, al-Humaidah, al-Wasl, al-Shuraih, al-Sultaniyah and al-Bakhirah. Umluj has palm-lined beaches, among them al-Duqm, al-Shab'an, al-Hurrah, al-Hisi and Jamm al-Thamilah.
Economy and giga-projects
Agriculture and fishing lead the region's economy. About 70% of its cultivated land is in and around Tabuk city, where water is plentiful, and the region is known for growing roses, sold locally and exported. Tayma is farming country too, with dates, grapes, pomegranates, figs and olives.
The region is an investment zone and a pillar of Saudi Vision 2030. NEOM covers 26,500 km² in the north, roughly the combined area of Slovenia, Luxembourg and Malta, and is designed for more than a million residents by 2030. South of it, AMAALA focuses on convalescence, health and therapy.
The Red Sea Project works to explore, rehabilitate, preserve and protect ninety islands; according to Saudipedia, 80% of the world's population can reach it in under eight hours. Also linked to the region is the King Salman Bridge, running from its coast to Egypt and described as the only bridge linking Asia and Africa.
Education and transport
The region has one public university, the University of Tabuk, founded in 2006 with about 36,000 students. Its main campus is in Tabuk city, with university colleges in Duba, al-Wajh, Umluj and Haql and a branch in Tayma. Formal education in the region began in 1926, and Tabuk city's first school, the Saudi School, opened in 1947.
Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk city became an independent international airport in 2011 at a cost of about SAR 242 million and serves as a gateway to NEOM, AMAALA and the Red Sea Project. In 2019 it received 1,786,960 arriving passengers, up more than 12% on 2018, on 16,014 flights, with direct links to 36 destinations, 20 of them domestic. The region also has al-Wajh Domestic Airport.