Buraydah Date Market

Qassim is the centre of Saudi date growing, with many millions of palms, and the market at Buraydah is where the crop is traded: through the harvest season pickups arrive stacked with boxes and crates, sellers spread the fruit in the open, and auctioneers move between the lots calling bids while buyers signal, with the whole floor working from before dawn. Dozens of varieties are sold, from sukkari and khalas to ajwa and the premium grades, and the sums involved are substantial. The Buraydah Date Festival, held annually over several weeks in the season, is presented as the largest date market in the world and includes competitions for the best fruit and the heaviest bunch.

What you actually see

• The auction floor - the lots spread in the open with auctioneers calling.
• Date varieties - the range of grades and types sold side by side.
• Loading and trading - the pickups, crates and buyers at work.
• The date festival - the annual competition and market season.

When to go

August to October is the harvest and the market season, with the festival running within it; outside that period the market is quiet. Arrive very early, since the auction works from before dawn and finishes in the morning.

Honest expectations

The market is a working trade floor and outside the season there is little to see. It runs at dawn and is over by mid-morning. Facilities for visitors are minimal. Summer heat in Qassim is severe even early in the day.

Nearby

Unaizah lies south; Riyadh is southeast.