Things to Do in Taif: Rose Farms, Cable Car, Shubra Palace and More

Taif offers a combination of agricultural landscapes, mountain scenery, and cultural heritage that is genuinely unusual for Saudi Arabia. At 1,800 metres above sea level in the Hejaz Mountains, the city has a temperate climate that makes it one of the more pleasant places to spend a few days in the kingdom — and the rose farms, which run for a few weeks each spring, are one of the most distinctive travel experiences in all of Arabia.

The Rose Farms of Al Shafa and Al Hada

Taif produces approximately 70% of Saudi Arabia’s rose oil (attar al-ward), harvested from the Taif rose (Rosa damascena trigintipetala) in a short window from mid-March through April. During this period, the hillside farms in the Al-Shafa and Al-Hada districts — 25 to 40 minutes southwest of Taif city — are fragrant for kilometres around.

Al-Ameer Farm on the Al-Shafa road runs the most visitor-friendly operation: free entry, demonstrations of the traditional copper-still distillation process, and direct sales of rose water, rose oil (attar), and rose-based products. The still demonstrations are worth seeing — the process of converting fresh petals into rose water within minutes is a surprisingly efficient piece of traditional technology.

Al-Zahrani Farm nearby offers a similar experience. Both farms are best visited early morning when the petals are freshest and the distilleries running at full output.

Outside the March–April season, the farms are quieter and the distilleries inactive, but the rose gardens can still be visited and rose products purchased year-round from the farm shops.

What to buy: Rose water costs approximately SAR 15–30 per 500ml — a significant saving on what airport shops charge for the same volume. Pure rose oil (attar) ranges from SAR 100–500 per 10ml depending on concentration and quality. Buy at the farms rather than in Taif city; the prices are lower and the product is often fresher.

Al Hada Cable Car

The Al Hada Cable Car runs 3.8 kilometres from the Al Hada area, 25 kilometres south of Taif, down through a dramatic drop in elevation with views across the Hejaz escarpment and the coastal plain far below. The contrast between the plateau at the top and the terrain below is dramatic — the mountain falls away steeply, and the descent gives a clear sense of how different the two worlds either side of the escarpment are.

Adult tickets: SAR 70. Children: SAR 40. Hours: Daily 9am–10pm. Allow at least an hour for the round trip. The cable car closes in high winds — check operating conditions before making the drive out from Taif, particularly in autumn and winter when gusts are more common.

The top station sits at the edge of the escarpment with good viewpoints in multiple directions. On clear days, visibility extends to the horizon over the Tihama coastal plain.

Shubra Palace Museum

Shubra Palace is a 1905 Ottoman-era building in central Taif that served as a summer royal residence for several decades and now functions as a regional museum. The architecture is unusual for Saudi Arabia — an eclectic mix of Italian neoclassical exterior and Ottoman interior detailing — and the building is one of the better-preserved examples of early twentieth-century Gulf and Hejaz palatial architecture.

Entry: Free. Hours: Saturday–Thursday 8am–5pm; closed Friday morning. The museum collection covers the history of the Hejaz region, the Taif area specifically, and the period of Saudi unification in the 1920s. The painted ceilings and tiled floors of the main reception rooms are the design highlights worth spending time with.

Shubra Palace is centrally located and easily combined with a walk through the old souk and honey market area.

Taif Zoo (Al Hawiyah)

Taif Zoo is one of Saudi Arabia’s larger public zoos, located on the southern outskirts of the city. The collection is particularly strong on species of the Arabian Peninsula — Arabian wolves, striped hyenas, sand cats, and a well-maintained bird section that includes houbara bustards, large migratory birds central to Gulf falconry culture.

Entry: SAR 10 adults, SAR 5 children. Hours: Daily 8am–10pm. The zoo is a reasonable two-hour visit, especially for families or anyone with an interest in the fauna of the peninsula. The Arabian wildcat and sand cat exhibits are well done and give good viewing.

The houbara bustard section is worth noting — these birds are of considerable cultural significance in the Gulf states, where falconry using houbara as quarry is a traditional practice. Breeding and reintroduction programmes have made the Taif zoo a centre for their conservation.

Al Rudaf Park

Al Rudaf Park is a free public green space in central Taif with rose gardens, walking paths, and picnic areas. At its best in March and April during the rose season, when the garden fragrance combines with the mountain air for an effect that justifies the short walk. Outside the rose season, it is a pleasant family park — grass, shade trees, and benches.

Entry: Free. Hours: Open daily. The park is busiest in the evening on weekends, when Taif residents use it as a recreational space. It is a useful place to understand how the city’s mountain climate creates a genuinely different lifestyle from the lowland cities — park use and outdoor leisure that would be impossible in Jeddah or Dammam in summer are entirely normal in Taif.

The Old Souk and Honey Market

The old souk area near Shubra Palace has the best concentration of shops selling Taif’s two flagship products: rose products and honey. The honey shops here sell Sidr honey (from sidr tree blossoms, the most prestigious variety), wildflower mountain honey, and several blended varieties. Tasting before purchasing is expected and encouraged.

Sidr honey prices: approximately SAR 100–300 per 500g depending on quality and production method. The range is wide — ask the shopkeeper to explain the difference between varieties, which they will do readily.

Rose tea made from dried Taif rose petals is available in several shops and small cafés near the souk. It is a distinctive local product not widely available outside the region.

Practical Notes

Getting here from Jeddah: 80 kilometres, approximately 1.5 hours by road. The mountain highway climbs through the Hejaz escarpment with views and switchbacks — drive carefully on the bends. From Mecca, the distance is similar: approximately 75 kilometres, 1.5 hours.

Getting here by air: Taif Regional Airport (TIF) has domestic routes from Riyadh (approximately one hour, SAR 120–280 return) and some international connections.

Getting around: A car is useful for reaching the rose farms and cable car; Taif city itself is manageable by taxi and ride-hailing.

Browse Taif tours and experiences including rose farm visits, cable car packages, and day trips from Mecca and Jeddah.

See Also

• Taif City Guide — transport, climate, and full trip-planning information
• Taif Hotels — accommodation from mountain resorts to budget options
• Abha vs Taif — comparing Saudi Arabia’s two highland cities
• Mecca City Guide — 75km from Taif; often combined with a Taif trip
• Jeddah City Guide — 80km from Taif via the escarpment highway
• Visiting Saudi Arabia in March — peak rose season timing for Taif
• Best Time to Visit Saudi Arabia — when Taif’s rose harvest and cooler weather align