Al-Bahah
Al Bahah is a city in the west of Saudi Arabia in the Hejaz area. It is the capital of Al Bahah Region, and is one of the Kingdom’s prime tourist attractions. It enjoys a pleasant climate and is surrounded by more than forty forests, including Raghdan, al Zaraeb and Baidan.
Al-Bahah is one of those few Saudi Provinces whose landscapes break all the stereotypes of Saudi Arabia, which is often seen as an endless sand dunes desert. The word al-Bahah (or Bahah without al which is equivalent to “the” in English) has many meanings; it means water and the maximum of it, the courtyard of a house, the high and abundant palm tree. In tales it refers to an extremely deep bottomless well in al-Zafir fortress.
Al-Bahah Province doesn’t propose just one, but several distinct kinds of landscape. The most famous is the Sarawat mountains ending on their western side by impressively steep cliffs on the edge of which are located the two main cities of the Province, Al-Bahah and Baljureshi. This area is the one characterized by temperate weather and rich plant cover due to relatively high annual rainfall. Nearly 2000 meters lower lays the Tehama which is the lowland coastal area to the west of the Sarawat characterized by very hot and humid weather and very little rainfall average. That area hosts two other major cities: Qilwah and Al-Mikhwah. Finally the eastern hills characterized by an altitude of 1550 to 1900 meters above sea level with cool winters, hot summers and sparse plant cover.
The province of Al-Bahah counts 53 forests and wildlife areas, the most famous sites being the forests of Raghdan, Ghomsan, Fayk, and Aljabal. Throughout the whole Province many charming traditional villages embelish the lanscapes such as the famous Zee Al-Ayn built on a small marble mountain where a natural spring flows all year long. The mountains of Al-Bahah are crossed by deep valleys where dams create unexpectedly large lakes during raining season