Job Discussion Forums

[trapezius]

Yeah I don't know what kind of places some of you have been patronizing, but I know first hand that in Jeddah, for SR. 120-150 a night, you can get a clean decent place in the middle of the city.

Last December, one of my American friends came and stayed in Jeddah for 3 nights, and we were able to negotiate the price down to SR. 110 from SR. 130.

Maybe the problem is the peculiar hotel/motel scene/terminology in this country.

4 and 5 star hotels exist here in almost every city like anywhere else (Hilton, Sheraton, Intercon, Movenpick, etc).

Then, 2 and 3 star hotels are very rare. They are usually local hotels and not international chains. Almost no one know about them.

There exist no motel chains here like they do in the US. Instead, there are thousands of what are essentially hotels/motels here called as furnished apartments. Most are of 2 or 3 star level, and are in fact like a hotel/motel inside with single/double bed rooms with bath and maybe even a kitchenette. But some of the more expensive ones (3 or 4 star) actually live up to their moniker and are furnished "apartments" with 2-3 full bedrooms, full size baths, and a full size kitchen with microwave, washing machine, etc. But even those are pretty cheap compared to a single room in a 4/5 star international hotel.

These furnished apartment places look like any apartment building from outside, so unless you look up at them to see the "XYZ furnished apartments" sign, you will miss them. In Jeddah, it seems like as many 10% of all apartment buildings might be these commercial ones, and probably around 30-40% of apartment buildings lining main streets. These commerical furnished apartment buildings are only found on main street fronts.

Just a few years ago for the first time in decades did I pay attention and was shocked at how many there are, at least in Jeddah. These places, as I mentioned in the beginning, typically range from SR. 120-150 per single room, and are not at all squalid, filthy, etc. Although, be forewarned, in busy seasons, prices are literally hiked to 150% or 200%, which is completely unIslamic, but then again, who cares about laws (man-made or God-given) in this country?

Yes, if you are earning good money, and want to pamper yourself, stay in a 4/5 star international hotel for a few days or a week or so, and spend a couple of thousand. But if you travel frequently within the country, or are a middle class earner, FURNISHED APARTMENTS are an indispensable tool/places to know about. Even a luxurious one would still cost much less than a 4 star international hotel.

Where do you think most of the millions of Saudis stay when they travel within the country for business/pleasure, whether alone or with families?

[007]

[scot47]

Try

www.sauditourism.gov.sa

The market is bigger than you might think
1. Saudis travelling within KSA
2. Emiratis, Qataris and Bahrainis ditto who want an Islamic environment. Not everyone wants scantily-clad females and bars wherever they go !
3.Expats who are based in Riyadh. Jeddah or Dhahran who want a few days somewhere different without the hassle and expense of leaving KSA
4. People who come on pilgrimage and/or on business and want to see something of the country

[Bebsi]

Stephen,

Maybe we just have different standards and expectations? I have very good experience of what constitutes third-world, but I admit, I have much more more experience of first-world living, and want to keep it that way!! Everything is relative.

You don't have to stay in a 5-star hotel for comfort...indeed, I think the 700 SAR a night places in Riyadh and Jeddah are a rip-off. In fact, a pretty good 4-star can be had for around 220-250 SAR. This is still only 50 euro, a fraction of what a 4-star would cost in Europe. A furnished apartment, as has been pointed out, works out even better value, especially if travelling with a family.

There is a problem with many furnished apartments, however. They cater primarily for the Saudi marklet, especially in smaller cities and towns, and often don't have couches, clear glass windows (only smoked glass, which is popular in KSA) or proper toilets, insted being kitted out with cushions, very noisy ACs, and holes in the ground.

During festive seasons, i.e. the Eids, they become crowded and extremely noisy, with many occupants feeling quite free to make a cacophany of noise between midnight and dawn. The prices also go up considerably, as Trapezius has pointed out.

I know I am speaking for myself here, but I have found that most places in the 100 SAR league that I stayed in...in fact all...were pretty grim.

Go up about another 70 SAR...about 20 USD...and the difference is very noticeable.

The reason there are relatively few middle-of-the-road establishments as we know them, is that there is not much of a middle-class in places like KSA. The locals are either pretty well-off (about 20%) or pretty poor. The only real middle-class is the expat community, although there is a fast-growing middle-class now becoming evident in urban KSA, e.g Jeddah and Riyadh.

Of course, there is always the 500 club. Read other posts for a humorous insight into the unique lifestyle of this elite group.

[Stephen Jones]

There is a very large middle class in Saudi, bebsi; as you probably had many members of it as colleagues I am surprised you missed it.

In most of the hotels I have stayed in in Saudi nearly all the other guests have been Saudis. I think I once paid SR150 but that was the maximum. The only place I really felt was not up to standard, was, as I have mentioned, in Abha.

[The_Prodiigy]

No, - Sir Bebsi.

Huge and visible middle-class in KSA.
Professional workers with car, own house, solid disposable income.

Those exceedingly well-off were the extreme minority.
Migrant workers make up most of the poor class.

Loads more decent choices to stay in clean comfort rather than those easily-recognised chains. Hilton, Sheraton, Hyatt and Dunstables are essentially for business accounts - booked by PAs.

A decent little place on the corner of Safeway and the electronics market had a fish tank and free percolated coffee and chocolate biscuits.

[Bebsi]

There's a substantial middle class in Saudi big cities, i.e. Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam. They are not representative of all of Saudi Arabia, however.

How many of you, i.e. western expats, have really travelled around? Some posters in this forum moan about how awful KSA is, and there are other people who are caught up in the petty politics of the workplace, or are people who left KSA long ago and still feel an innate need to whinge about the place.