Not the end of the world in my opinion, as I didn't not go to Saudi for the swimming. We persevered and finally got in, but it really was too cold. The setting around the pool area was lovely and i ventured over with one of my fellow travelers to use the pool, unfortunetly it was freezing, and I mean freezing, not just "not warm"|, It was around 6 pm so the sun had not long set, I ma guessing that the sun had not been on it for several hours. Breakfast and Dinners here were extremely good, buffet style with a huge amount of choice, plus a bbq area where things could be cooked for you and an egg station for the morning. My only tiny negative comment, which seems petty really, is that the bedside lamp is very small and lower than the bed, so you cant read by it, you would have to have the main light on. Well stocked bathroom, coffee maker and water. The chalets are a perfectly decent size, with their own outdoor space, chairs and looking out over the rocks which is lovely in the morning. The chalets/cabins are in 2 different areas and they are a fair walk from each other, the pool area and the restaurant, however you can get taken around by a golf buggy easily. On checking in our bags were taken, with us, on golf buggies to our room and we were shown in by the driver. We arrived in the dark, which is a lovely way to arrive here. I stayed here for 2 nights as part of a group tour of Saudi Arabia. There are far better options and many more to come.… Service levels were fairly low and judging from one breakfast and one lunch the food needs major improvement. Standard rooms are like motels anywhere with cost-cutting amenities and, it seems, twin beds. What matters is the management, the quality, the service and the food and I have to say the Shaden seemed a little cheap and under-achieving. Any hotel here will take maximum advantage of the setting and the Shaden is no exception. We were originally booked into the Habitas resort but at the last moment a member of the Saudi royal family decided he wanted to stay at Habitas so we were all kicked out and transferred to the Shaden Resort. Obviously we did not sail to Al Ula as the ‘desert is an ocean in which no oar is dipped.’ We berthed in Jeddah and flew up to Al Ula on a chartered jet. We were visiting on a small Silversea expedition ship. Now the Saudi government has decided to embrace international tourism and are focussing a lot of investment in this area.
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