Staying online in Saudi Arabia: the Riyadh, AlUla and Jeddah route
Saudi Arabia is a huge country, and you feel the distances straight away: Riyadh and Jeddah are more than a thousand kilometres apart, and AlUla is reached either by plane or by a long drive through the desert. Most tourists and business travellers end up covering the same triangle: the capital, ancient AlUla and seaside Jeddah. Here is how to keep mobile data working on each leg of that route rather than for the country in general.
Riyadh: a business week run from your phone
The capital is a city of meetings, trade shows and conferences. Public transport is developing, but most visitors still get around by ride-hailing apps: the big international services operate in Saudi Arabia, and without mobile data getting a car outside an office tower is hard. Add corporate email, cloud documents and video calls with the office, and your data use is clearly higher than on an ordinary holiday.
If you plan to share the connection with a laptop between meetings, check on the plan page whether hotspot is supported. For a week like this, budget with a margin: email, maps and messengers fit into a few gigabytes, while regular video calls and uploading presentations can easily add as much again.
Install the eSIM at home while you have stable Wi-Fi, and switch on data roaming for the new line once you land in Riyadh.
The road to AlUla: desert, rock formations and gaps in signal
AlUla, with the tombs of Hegra, Elephant Rock and its canyons, is the country's signature tourist destination. The town and the main sites usually have coverage, but they are separated by tens of kilometres of desert, and on some stretches of road the signal can weaken or drop. That is normal for the area and has nothing to do with the plan you choose.
Hence a simple rule: everything you need on the road should work offline. Visits to Hegra are booked in advance, so keep tickets and confirmations as screenshots instead of opening a link on the spot.
- Download an offline map of the AlUla area before leaving the hotel
- Save e-tickets and your car rental booking to your photo gallery
- Charge the phone in the car, as searching for signal drains the battery
- Share your route and expected return time with someone close
Jeddah and the Red Sea: the Corniche, the old town and photos
Jeddah is the most relaxed city on the route. The long Corniche waterfront, the historic Al-Balad district with its coral-stone houses and trips to Red Sea beaches mean lots of walking, filming and posting. This is usually where data runs out fastest: video and stories weigh many times more than chat.
Jeddah is also the main gateway for pilgrims heading to Makkah. If your trip involves Umrah, we have a separate detailed guide covering peak network load and connectivity in the holy cities.
Domestic flights and internet calling
Domestic flights are the most practical way to link Riyadh, AlUla and Jeddah. Boarding passes, gate changes and airline messages arrive in apps, so you need data at the airport, not just in town. An eSIM is handy because it works right after landing, with no hunting for a phone shop.
Keep in mind that in Gulf countries voice and video calls through some messaging apps have historically been restricted, and the rules change over time. Text messages, photos and voice notes generally work fine, but test an important call in advance or keep regular calling available through your home SIM.
For urgent calls keep your home SIM in the phone: the Funsim eSIM handles data while your number stays reachable for calls and SMS.
What to sort out before flying to Saudi Arabia
Check that your phone supports eSIM and is not carrier-locked. You can buy a plan online without a passport and install it by QR code, with the Quick install button or manually. Choose a local plan if you are visiting only Saudi Arabia, or a regional one if the trip continues to Bahrain, the UAE or other Gulf countries.
If you run out of data mid-trip, an extra package can be bought online in a couple of minutes. Entry and tourist visa rules are updated from time to time, so check them with official sources before you travel.