At Jubbah in the Hail region, sandstone outcrops carry rock inscriptions dating back more than 10,000 years. That UNESCO-listed landscape now marks the far end of a road trip the Kingdom is presenting as a single product: the Northern Route, which has just received its own official identity.
Tourism Minister Ahmed Al-Khateeb, who also chairs the Saudi Tourism Authority, launched the identity in an announcement carried by Saudi media on Saturday, 31 October 2026, under a slogan that translates as every stop is a journey. The route runs about 1,200 km from Riyadh to Jubbah and is one of the tourism products in the Saudi Winter 2026 programme.
The idea is consistency. The design draws on the character of the places along the way, including heritage sites and Najdi architecture, and gives the route one visual and marketing presence rather than a string of separate stops. A route map released with the identity shows 16 stopping points. The authority has also asked hospitality providers, trip organisers and experience operators to use the identity in their own marketing, following an approved guide.
Travellers already have a sense of what lies on the road. A guide issued for the trail last December took it through Thadiq, with Ghamrah Tourist Village and the North Riyadh UNESCO Global Geopark, then through Qassim, where Al-Bustan in Buraidah offers rural and farm tourism, before ending in Hail with the Aja Mountains hiking trails, Al-Didhan Reserve and Jabel Umm Sinman at Jubbah.
The reports gave no prices or package details. The authority presents the launch as part of its wider work on developing and marketing tourism products under Vision 2030.
