Cities

Kuwait City faces the water along a long corniche, its skyline marked by the Kuwait Towers and the domes of the Grand Mosque. Souq Al-Mubarakiya still trades in spices, textiles and dates in the middle of the modern centre.

Offshore, the island of Failaka carries Bronze Age Dilmun remains and a Hellenistic settlement founded in the time of Alexander the Great — one of the very few Greek sites in the Gulf.

Muscat stretches between the Gulf of Oman and the rugged foothills of the Hajar Mountains, giving the capital one of the most distinctive settings in the Arabian Peninsula. Rather than relying on dense clusters of skyscrapers, the city is known for white and cream-colored buildings, landscaped avenues, traditional architectural details, and neighborhoods shaped by the surrounding mountains and coast.

Historic Muscat preserves important landmarks including Al Jalali and Al Mirani forts, while Muttrah remains closely connected to the city's maritime past through its corniche, harbor, and traditional souq. The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque and the Royal Opera House Muscat represent another side of the capital, combining monumental design with contemporary cultural life.

Modern infrastructure, expanding tourism, education, logistics, and commercial development have transformed the wider Muscat metropolitan area. Yet development has generally maintained a visual identity that distinguishes the city from many other rapidly growing Gulf capitals.

For visitors, Muscat offers an accessible introduction to modern Oman: a capital where government, commerce, culture, mountains, beaches, historic neighborhoods, and traditional markets remain closely connected.

Morocco's imperial cities — Fez, Marrakech, Meknes, and Rabat — each served as a capital under different dynasties and preserve important chapters of the country's political and cultural development. Their palaces, mosques, madrasas, gardens, gates, walls, and medinas reflect centuries of royal patronage and urban life.

Fez is renowned for its historic medina and long association with scholarship, craftsmanship, and trade. Marrakech grew as a major political and commercial center in the south, while Meknes retains monumental gates, royal structures, and granaries associated with its period as an imperial capital.

Rabat, today's national capital, combines historic monuments with government institutions and modern neighborhoods. The Kasbah of the Udayas, Hassan Tower, old medina, landscaped avenues, and Atlantic setting demonstrate how layers of Moroccan history remain part of a living contemporary city.

Together, the four imperial cities offer a broad view of Morocco's dynasties, architecture, religious learning, traditional crafts, and changing centers of power. They remain essential places for understanding how the country's past continues to shape its identity.

Damascus lays claim to the longest record of continuous habitation of any capital city. The Street Called Straight still crosses the walled old town, past the Umayyad Mosque, the Azm Palace and courtyard houses hidden behind plain doors.

Aleppo grew where the caravan routes met, and its covered souq — many kilometres of vaulted stone lanes beneath a citadel on an ancient mound — was among the largest in the world.

Doha holds both the restored alleys of Souq Waqif and the towers of West Bay, facing each other across the water. Between them stand the Museum of Islamic Art, the National Museum of Qatar and the arts and heritage district of Msheireb.

The city has become a hub for aviation, sport and media, and hosted the FIFA World Cup in 2022 — the first held in the Arab world.

The medina of Moroni is a compact quarter of narrow lanes, carved doors and coral-stone houses gathered around the Old Friday Mosque, which has stood at the harbour since the fifteenth century.

Older sultanate capitals such as Iconi and Domoni preserve palaces, tombs and defensive walls from the era when each island held several competing courts.

Saudi Arabia's cities are undergoing remarkable transformation while retaining distinct regional identities.

Riyadh, the capital, has grown into a major political, financial, business, and cultural center. Contemporary towers rise alongside historic areas such as Diriyah, while new transport networks, parks, cultural venues, entertainment districts, and large urban developments continue to reshape the city.

On the Red Sea, Jeddah combines a centuries-old trading and pilgrimage heritage with a modern coastal lifestyle. Its historic Al-Balad district contrasts with the Corniche, contemporary architecture, commercial districts, and waterfront development.

Other cities including Dammam, Khobar, Dhahran, Madinah, Makkah, Abha, Tabuk, and Taif each contribute different landscapes, industries, traditions, and lifestyles to modern Saudi Arabia.

Djibouti City is a working port at the centre of Red Sea shipping, with a European quarter, the covered markets of the Quartier 1, and a waterfront that faces the busiest sea lane in the region.

Tadjoura, on the northern shore of the gulf, is one of the oldest towns on this coast and is known for its whitewashed mosques above the water.

Mogadishu grew as a medieval trading city; the Fakr ad-Din mosque there dates to the thirteenth century, and the old quarter of Hamar Weyne preserves the coral-stone architecture of the Indian Ocean world.

Berbera on the Gulf of Aden and Zeila to its west were among the great transit ports of the region, exporting livestock, hides and incense north into Arabia for centuries.