Uqair

Uqair was the port serving Al-Ahsa and the Najd interior, in use since antiquity and important into the twentieth century as the point through which goods and pilgrims moved, with a fort, customs house, warehouses and merchants' buildings behind a beach of white sand. It declined once Dammam and the modern ports took the trade, and the settlement was abandoned, leaving the structures standing empty in the sand. Restoration work has been carried out on parts of the fort. The beach beside it is broad, shallow and largely empty, used for camping and kitesurfing, and the combination of ruins and empty shore is what makes the site worth the drive from Hofuf.

History

Uqair has been proposed as the site of Gerrha, the rich incense-trading city described by Strabo and Pliny the Elder, and until the 1930s, when roads reached Dammam, Qatif and al-Hasa, most imports for Hofuf and the interior passed through it by caravan (Wikipedia, Uqair).

Highlights

• The fort - the walled structure above the shore.
• Customs and warehouse buildings - the abandoned port structures.
• The white beach - the shallow shore beside the ruins.
• The empty setting - the abandoned port in open sand.

When to go

November to March; the coast is hot and humid in summer. Weekends bring campers to the beach. Mornings and late afternoon give the best light on the buildings.

Good to know

Restoration is partial and parts of the site are fenced or unstable. There is no interpretation, staff or facility. The beach has no shade or services. The drive from Hofuf takes over an hour on desert road.

Nearby

Al-Ahsa oasis lies west; Salwa and the Qatari border are south.

Key facts