Saudi Arabia has joined the ranks of the world’s most interesting luxurious locations, with seven motels awarded coveted Michelin Keys within the information’s first-ever world rating.
Simply as Michelin Stars outline the head of superb eating, the brand new Michelin Keys recognise one of the best resort experiences on earth — the place design, service, and setting mix to create stays of uncommon distinction.
Unveiled at a ceremony in Paris and broadcast globally, the inaugural International Michelin Keys Choice marks a significant enlargement for the enduring model — extending its 125-year legacy from haute delicacies to world-class hospitality.
Michelin Key motels in Saudi Arabia
The primary world record consists of 2,457 motels throughout 120 locations, with Michelin inspectors anonymously assessing properties utilizing 5 common standards that go far past facilities.
From One Key motels providing distinctive stays to Three Key locations delivering the head of luxurious, the Michelin Keys have change into an impartial worldwide benchmark for excellence — and a trusted information for discerning travellers.
Michelin key rankings defined
- One Michelin Key – A really particular keep: A resort with distinctive character and standout service that goes past expectations
- Two Michelin Keys – An distinctive keep: Really distinctive in each method, operated with care, satisfaction, and distinct persona
- Three Michelin Keys – A rare keep: Among the many world’s most outstanding motels, delivering the last word in consolation, service, and magnificence.
Prime Saudi motels
Among the many first recipients within the Kingdom are seven Saudi motels that redefine trendy Arabian hospitality — every reflecting the nation’s rising prominence as a world journey vacation spot.
Hand-picked by Michelin inspectors for his or her design, service, and sense of place, these properties embody the ambitions of Saudi Imaginative and prescient 2030 to raise the nation’s tourism panorama and place the Kingdom among the many world’s main luxurious locations.
Two-Michelin Key motels in Saudi Arabia
Six Senses Southern Dunes, The Crimson Sea
What Michelin stated: “To name Six Senses Southern Dunes, The Crimson Sea a vacation spot resort could be stating the apparent; only a few of us are going to search out ourselves simply passing by this expanse of desert in the hunt for a room for the night time.
“No, like all Six Senses, you come to Southern Dunes for top-flight luxurious in a spectacular setting — right here, an oasis-like assortment of rooms, suites, and villas, set underneath tent-like roofs in an otherworldly panorama of rolling dunes, with the Hijaz Mountains within the distance.
“Stylistically, the lodging strike a outstanding stability, feeling recent and novel but additionally heat and historically impressed”.
Shebara Resort
What Michelin stated: “On a non-public Crimson Sea island, Shebara’s mirrored orbs shimmer above the waterline: half architectural spectacle, half low-impact design.
“Inside, the villas are curved, quiet, and absolutely self-contained, with infinity swimming pools and sea views that appear to dissolve into the horizon.
“Actions vary from e-foiling to diving amongst untouched reefs, however the tempo stays private”.
Nujuma, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve
What Michelin stated: “On a serene Crimson Sea archipelago, Nujuma is the primary Ritz-Carlton Reserve within the Center East, a set of sculptural, solar-powered villas unfold throughout sand and sea.
“Constructed for privateness and exploration, the resort gives diving into one of many world’s least-touched reef programs, alongside detailed encounters with Saudi tradition at The Conservation Home.
“Stargazing, crusing, and guided walks with resident naturalists spherical out the tempo”.
Desert Rock Resort
What Michelin stated: “Tucked into the craggy cliffs of the Hijaz mountains, Desert Rock isn’t simply near nature, it’s carved into it.
“Villas and suites are constructed straight into stone or perched alongside ridgelines, with personal swimming pools and views that stretch throughout the open desert.
“Ground-to-ceiling home windows blur the road between indoors and out, making the panorama a part of the expertise”.
One-Michelin Key motels in Saudi Arabia
Banyan Tree AlUla
What Michelin stated: “The setting, within the otherworldly Ashar Valley, is extraordinary, and steeped in really historic historical past — and it takes fairly a resort to stay as much as these environment.
“Banyan Tree AlUla, nonetheless, is completely as much as the duty.
“Its 47 freestanding villas are draped in tent-like shades, however are strong, everlasting constructions, containing lodging which are as luxurious as any resort on this planet”.
Waldorf Astoria Jeddah – Qasr Al Sharq
What Michelin stated: “Think about the Saudi Arabian equal of the Waldorf-Astoria and also you’re nicely in your approach to understanding what kind of place is the Qasr Al Sharq.
“In truth there’s motive for the comparability — it simply so occurs it’s a part of the Waldorf-Astoria assortment.
“After all this being Jeddah, somewhat than New York, you’ll discover sure concessions made to the locality; the model, clearly, is extra suited to the gateway to Mecca than the gateway to the Higher East Aspect”.
The St. Regis Crimson Sea Resort
What Michelin stated: “A 25-minute seaplane from the Saudi mainland delivers you to one thing startlingly serene.
“The St. Regis Crimson Sea Resort, formed like a spiral of sand and shell, is the primary personal island escape to open on the water on this huge, untouched archipelago.
“Designers created the villas, whether or not perched above coral shallows or pressed into the dune-line, to mix seamlessly into their environment”.
