What Women-Only Beaches Reveal About Saudi Arabia's Changing Wellness Culture

It’s my final day on a women-only tour from Riyadh to Jeddah with Intrepid Travel, led by a female guide. Our group of eight women — four Australians, three Americans, and a lone Canadian (me) — has had the privilege of sharing meals with Saudi women in their homes, and joining pilgrims inside the Quba Mosque’s female space in the holy city of Medina. Now, we’re relaxing elbow to elbow with our fellow female sunseekers at La Maison D’Obhur Beach Club, a women-only day resort about a one-hour drive north of Jeddah’s Old Town.

The author at La Maison D’Obhur Beach Club. Photo: Lisa Kadane

On the trip, I’ve grown accustomed to seeing most Saudi women wearing black abayas and hijabs that cover the body, head, and neck. Though no longer legally mandated, many women choose to continue to wear traditional dress. So seeing a beach packed with swimsuit-clad sun worshippers is, to say the least, surprising.

“Women here, they love to tan,” explains our guide, Jeddah resident Sara Aljohani, while wearing a one-piece with a swim skirt. Her friends are normally covered when they go to other places, she says. “[So] they want to have a private beach.”

La Maison D’Obhur. Photo: Lisa Kadane

Opened in 2022, La Maison D’Obhur is one of a growing number of women-only wellness clubs in Saudi Arabia, designed for ladies who want to relax by the sea, by a pool, or in a spa on their own terms. The primary draws for women are the social connections and the chance to disconnect from daily pressures. With no men allowed, they’re also free to tan without self-consciousness or fear of judgment.

“The demand has grown because these venues offer privacy, safety, and a tailored guest experience designed specifically around women’s preferences,” says Abdulrahman Talal Fakieh, La Maison D’Obhur’s general manager.

High walls on either side of the club separate the grounds from neighboring buildings, so there’s no worry about outsiders getting a clandestine peek. What’s more, an attendant placed a sticker over our phone cameras upon entry to the club. To respect guests’ privacy and ensure that female bathers aren’t captured in the frame, our group was told we could only take photos when supervised by staff.

Other women-only clubs along Jeddah’s Obhur Coast include membership-based Oia Beach Resort and Le Pont de l’Amitié, a day resort focused on wellness with fitness classes, spa access and kayak rentals. Mangrove Beach Resort and La Mer Beach Resort offer women-only days, and in summer 2025, Bambi Beach turned into a Barbie-inspired paradise, complete with pink lounge chairs and flamingo floaties on pop-up women’s days during Jeddah Season, a summer festival. Day entry to women-only beaches and clubs range in price from about 80 SAR ($21) to 250 SAR ($65).

Many beach clubs are popping up along sections of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coastline. Photo: Saudi Tourism Authority

Fakieh says the growth of these wellness and recreation spaces for women reflects a broader cultural and social evolution that’s aligned with Vision 2030, the country’s ambitious plan to diversify the economy and attract 150 million tourists annually by the end of the decade.  Spaces like La Maison D’Obhur bridge the gap as Saudi Arabia opens to tourism, eliminating gender stress so all women can feel comfortable at the beach.

“Everybody seems very comfortable in their skin. Confident, relaxed,” says Hilary Eaton, a traveler on my tour. “That’s something that if there were guys around would be totally different.”

At La Maison D’Obhur, female attendants padded across raked sand to deliver mocktails to my lounge chair, and helped position the umbrellas to shield me from the penetrating sun. Behind me, two women shared a shisha pipe, deep in conversation. The spa-like setting felt indulgent, despite the fairly reasonable price, at least compared to Caribbean or European beach club standards.

“Many guests describe the experience as therapeutic,” says Fakieh. “Especially being by the sea, which is scientifically associated with reduced anxiety and improved emotional balance.”

The spa at the luxury Fairmont Riyadh. Photo: Fairmont Riyadh

Women-only wellness isn’t just confined to the country’s coasts. Hotels in cities like Riyadh are carving out spaces where all guests can feel comfortable regardless of their cultural background.

“The growth of women-only wellness environments is not about separation. It’s about providing choice,” says Gordana Lazic, Communications and PR Manager at the Fairmont Riyadh. “Women are increasingly defining how and where they want to spend their time, and the industry is responding by creating spaces that feel aligned with their comfort and values.”

The Fairmont Riyadh provides women-only access to its spa and wellness facilities daily between 11 AM and 4 PM. There’s also a dedicated lounge just for women with relaxation areas and treatment rooms where privacy is guaranteed. Lazic says the set-up appeals to Saudi citizens and travelers from other Muslim countries, as well as Western tourists. She calls it an example of “culturally intelligent hospitality.”

“The hospitality industry [in Saudi Arabia] is thoughtfully balancing international luxury standards with local cultural awareness,” she says.

The pool at Shaden Resort, Saudi Arabia. Photo: Lisa Kadane

The Saudi destination where the changes felt most dramatic is AlUla, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the country’s northwest, where sandstone pinnacles rise from the desert like minarets. Tour buses bring international visitors to see Hegra, an ancient Nabataean city that rivals Jordan’s Petra, and to stroll AlUla’s revitalized Old Town, where restored mud-brick buildings now house restaurants and boutiques. In the surrounding desert, resorts like Banyan Tree AlUla include swimming pools surrounded by towering rock formations, and high-end spas.

One boutique hotel is Shaden Resort, with separate men’s and women’s spa areas with changing rooms, steam rooms, and saunas. Here, cultural norms seemed even more relaxed. While other hotels I’d stayed at hosted women’s-only pool hours, Shaden Resort’s pool is open to both genders at all times. “Wear whatever you want,” a young male pool attendant told me and another female guest.

But instead of feeling liberated, I felt self-conscious stripping down to my one-piece in front of him. The pool deck was also empty of any Saudi sunbathers. This more laissez-faire set-up, skewing more Western than Saudi Arabian, didn’t feel “culturally intelligent.” So, I donned my rashguard and shorts and went for a refreshing dip.

It was a reminder that tourism is new here, and the balance between comfort, visibility, and choice is unfolding in real time. The future of travel in Saudi Arabia will be about more than who arrives. It’ll be about how women, especially Saudi women, decide to shape the spaces around them.