Medina
Discover Medina
Medina (Arabic: المدينة, Madinah), officially known as Al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (Arabic: المدينة المنورة, al-Madīnah al-Munawwarah), is a city in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia. Commonly referred to as the "cradle of Islamic culture and civilisation", it is Islam's second holiest city.
Taste of Medina...
There are restaurants selling diverse foods, largely from across the Muslim world. There are Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi restaurants in abundance. Many of these restaurants will serve favourites such as shawarmas and falafel. There is also Chinese, Indonesian, Turkish, Egyptian, and local food. The Western fast-food chains 24.4737539.608661 McDonald's, KFC, and Hardee's have outlets in the city, as do Saudi chains such as Al Baik and Kudu. The cheapest local specialities are shawarma, taamiyya (a type of vegetable sandwich), foul (cooked beans) with tameez (bread), and Broasted chicken which refers to pressure fried chicken cooked and seasoned similarly to KFC. There are always dates. To the north of King Fahd gate, there is a street with numerous street food stalls. The food comes from various countries with significant Muslim populations, including Indonesia, China, India, Pakistan, and other countries in the Middle East. As it is everywhere else in the country, alcohol is prohibited. Drinking any kind of beverage during daylight hours during Ramadan is subject to punishment by the religious police and thus should not be done in the open. Medina has many hotels, most of which are very close to the mosque. Numerous 5 star hotels have been and are being constructed all around the Prophet's mosque within a radius of 500 m. Beyond these are many budget hotels extending miles from the Masjid Nabavi.
Essential Information
Getting There
Multiple OptionsUnlike Mecca, Medina is open to everyone, including non-Muslims. Non-Muslims were once banned from entering Al-Haram Al-Madani, where the Prophet's Mosque is located, but this was gradually relaxed in 2021 and 2023 as part of Vision 2030. Muslims planning to visit during the Hajj season must apply for a Hajj visa. Non-Muslims may not visit during the Hajj season. For pilgrims, the most common route is to arrive in Jeddah by plane, and get on a special pilgrims' bus to Mecca and Medina, and come back to fly home in a couple of weeks. The Saudi Arabian Public Transport Company (SAPTCO) runs luxurious buses several times daily to and from most parts of the country at cheap rates. There are also privately run buses. The SAPTCO terminal is off-limits to non-Muslims. Medina is linked with Jeddah and Mecca via high-speed railway. Services are frequent, with up to 15 departures per day in each direction. Journey time is just under two hours from Jeddah and 2½ hours from Mecca....
Getting Around & Staying
Getting Around
A new bus network debuted in mid-2025 in Medina. The routes of the buses are available on the official App or on Google Maps. You can tap your card to pay, but as of June 2025, it seems not to work very well. So drivers usually let you in without paying. If you are on the side of the road, you might find locals willing to pick you up and take you to your destination for a fee, even though they are not officially taxis, but beware of con artists from among both official and unofficial taxi drivers (see "Stay safe" below). If you take an unofficial taxi ride, negotiate the price up front. You can use Uber to establish your baseline (maximum) price. People will often ask for prices well in excess of the Uber price. There is a shuttle (looks like a train of golf carts) that runs along Qiba Road between the Prophet's Mosque and the Quba Mosque. Payment is done in cash to the driver, and you can hop on anywhere along the way (although payment is the same regardless).
Where to Stay
Medina has many hotels, most of which are very close to the mosque. Numerous 5 star hotels have been and are being constructed all around the Prophet's mosque within a radius of 500 m. Beyond these are many budget hotels extending miles from the Masjid Nabavi. The tariff depends on a hotel's distance from the mosque, the nearer the more expensive. Even these low cost hotels have facilities like proper beds with clean linen, carpeted floors, air conditioning, refrigerator in every room, tiled bathrooms fitted with either eastern or western type WCs (sometimes both), 24 hours running hot and cold water. Kitchens with LPG and burners and sinks are also available for those pilgrims who would like to cook their own meals. But now all of these small old hotels are being demolished on a large scale to make way for starred hotels. Many visitors think that because Medina is a holy city, they need not fear being treated dishonestly. That is not a safe assumption.
Money & Budget
The streets leading to and around the Prophet's Mosque are lined with shops selling goods of every variety. Visitors to Medina usually buy prayer rugs (some with magnets pointing towards the Kaaba), caps, Tasveeh or rosary beads, Abayas, pictures of the holy city and mosques, religious CDs, copies of the Holy Quran, clocks sounding Azan or the call to prayer as souvenirs. The best of them to take back are dates. There are also huge glittering shopping complexes and malls selling goods from all over the world. Credit cards are largely unaccepted in smaller businesses. Few banks will exchange travelers' checks. Many larger businesses, chains, and convenience stores will accept credit card and Apple Pay. There are restaurants selling diverse foods, largely from across the Muslim world.
Safety Information
Safety Overview
Many visitors think that because Medina is a holy city, they need not fear being treated dishonestly. That is not a safe assumption. Below are some scams to beware of: Dress appropriately, especially if you will be entering mosques. Even if you aren't visiting a holy site, if you wear shorts, you will often be the only person in view who is doing so, which may draw attention towards you. Mecca is the other holy city visited by people taking part in the Umrah (minor pilgrimage) or the Hajj. You can hire a taxi to take you to Mecca, which will cost about SR 500 for up to four passengers. A much cheaper way to get there is to use the SAPTCO (Saudi Arabia Public Transport Company) bus services instead. There are two versions: regular and VIP. The regular service is reasonably comfortable and will cost SR 55 per person. The VIP version (which you can catch from the Crowne Plaza hotel) is slightly more luxurious and will cost SR 100 per person.