Rabigh
Rabigh
A historic Hijazi coastal city used as a miqat for ihram after ancient al-Juhfa declined. It lies north of Jeddah on the Red Sea and was a stop on the Prophetic coastal Hajj route; today it hosts a major industrial port.
Plan your visit
Practical information verified separately from the historical record.
Before you go: Check with the operator or a local guide before departure; field access details have not yet been verified.
Why visit?
Stand at the living successor to al-Juhfa where pilgrims from the north and west still enter ihram on the Red Sea coast.
Rabigh is a historic city on the Red Sea coast of Makkah province, about one hundred and twelve kilometers north of Jeddah. Classical Islamic geographers mention it near al-Juhfa and along the coastal Hajj road. When the old town of al-Juhfa faded through plague, floods, and abandonment, pilgrims coming from Syria and Egypt began entering ihram at Rabigh in its place.
In the early fifteenth century AH a large industrial port was established at Rabigh, and the area became a center for petrochemical complexes. Yet the town retains its older identity as a junction between the coastal road and the interior passes of the Hijaz, linking the Hijaz with Najd through the mountain routes.
Rabigh represents the practical continuation of al-Juhfa's miqat function and the meeting point of land and sea pilgrimage traffic on the western Arabian coast.