Mumbai30 Nov 23 1 Traveller Economy
Showing International Flight from Jeddah
About Jeddah
Jeddah is the commercial capital of Saudi Arabia and is also very close to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. Its proximity to these cities is what attracts most tourists and pilgrims to Jeddah. It is also the second-largest city in Saudi Arabia. The country is known for standing by its customs and traditions strongly. You will get to witness the Islamic culture and their lifestyle first hand on your trip to Jeddah. There are, however, quite a few rules that every tourist must follow. But apart from these, Jeddah is also known as one of the hottest shopping destinations after Dubai. Jeddah is right along the Red Sea and also has beaches that tourists can access. You can either head to the beach to watch the sunrise or catch the sunrise by the beach. You can also make the most of all the water-based activities that the city has to offer to tourists. You can sign up for a tour of the city or explore it on your own. Jeddah is also known for its luxurious dining experience. You will find a lot of restaurants with a palatial decor and services that make you feel like royalty.
Best Time to Visit Jeddah
While Jeddah experiences summer and winter, it has very little chance of seeing rains throughout the year. August is the hottest month in the city, and January is the coldest one. It is recommended that you head to the city in the colder months. October to March is the best time to head to Jeddah. The days are warm, but the nights get really chilly. Make sure you pack your warm clothes while heading to Jeddah during winter. You will also have to book your hotel in Jeddah several weeks in advance since availability can be quite the issue at the last minute. You will also have to book your flight tickets to Jeddah well in advance before the prices increase at the last moment. Summer begins from April and lasts till September. While the early spring or summer is not all bad owing to the increase in temperature, if you can't bear the chilly nights, this is the perfect time to plan a trip to Jeddah. If you are travelling during the summer, make sure you carry an extra sunblock with you and stay well-hydrated. With Jeddah being a desert, the weather doesn't get too humid as such in summer. It's scorching hot, and it will only leave you too exhausted to venture out. The city does see a lot of tourists who are visiting Jeddah mainly to head to Mecca and Medina. Since winter is the high tourist season for Jeddah, a lot of restaurants and museums will have long queues. However, if you visit during early spring or late autumn season, you will find interesting offers and discounts here. You can attend the Red Sea International Film Festival in March, Al-Hemma Celebrations, Fireworks Shows and Kingdom of Stars in September. These are a few additional reasons for you to plan your trip to Jeddah in winter instead of summer. The temperature can reach a maximum of 45 degree Celsius during summer.
Places to Visit in Jeddah
Apart from its proximity to the holiest cities, Jeddah has quite a few things in store for tourists. The Al-Rahma Mosque and Bait Al Balad are some of the popular tourist spots in the city. Al-Rahma mosque boasts of Venetian-style architecture and is also called 'The Floating Mosque'. It was built in 1985 and is one of the most important places in the city. Jeddah Corniche is another tourist attraction in the city that you just can't miss. You can enjoy the scenic view of the Red Sea along with the fountains, sculptures and recreational areas that are present in the area. This is the perfect place to end your day at and make sure you catch the sunrise from here. Jeddah also has museums for all the art and history lovers in town. Abdul Raouf Khalil Museum of Jeddah is another tourist spot you won't regret visiting at all. It has a castle, mosque in it along with a museum that showcases the Pre-Islamic and Islamic artefacts. It is located in the centre of the city and reaching the museum will not be troublesome at all. Mecca Gate, which is also known as Quran gate, is located on the Jeddah-Makkah highway and was built back in 1979. The gate resembles the holy Quran to tourists and passengers headed to Mecca for their pilgrimage. It would be best if you also visited the Jeddah Waterfront, an important seaport in Jeddah. It has been serving as one for centuries now. It is also called the 'Bride of the Red Sea'. Don't be disappointed thinking that you won't be able to satisfy the shopaholic in you. Head over to one of the malls, especially the Red Sea Mall, and you can shop till you drop. It would be even better if you visit the malls during the sales season.
Souq-al-alwali is one of the best places in the city to go on a shopping spree. You will find genuine Islamic art, clothes and Arabian jewellery at a reasonable price if you know how to bargain. Naseef House used to be the royal residence of King Abdul Aziz. It is a restored coral house and a very beautiful one at that, too. However, make sure that you call ahead and make an appointment before you leave your hotel.
Things to do in Jeddah
You can either sign up for a sightseeing tour of the city or explore the main tourist spots in Jeddah yourself. Dune Bashing at the desert is a popularly taken up activity in Jeddah, and you will certainly not regret it. You can also opt for camel rides along the desert. A lot of tour companies will also be organising overnight camps at the desert that you can sign up for if you are up for it. Head over to the Red Sea to enjoy the most beautiful sunset. Al-Shallal is a theme park that attracts not only tourists about locals of the city but also the locals. Al-Shallal is a theme park and has quite a few human-made waterfalls and lakes. You can also go o a food tasting tour of the city and try some of the most delicious shawarma at the local food stalls. You can also have lots of beach fun while you are in Jeddah. If you love water and want to explore marine life, you can join the Desert Sea Divers and sign up for guided snorkelling or diving tours to the coral reefs of the Red Sea. You can also participate in other water-based activities like windsurfing, jet skiing, boating and fishing. Jeddah is known for making sure that tourists don't leave the city without falling in love with the traditional middle eastern cuisine. Sign up for a food tour of the city and dine at some of the finest restaurants in Jeddah.
Food and Restaurants in Jeddah
Middle Eastern cuisine is popular all over the world, and there is nothing better than experiencing it in the Middle East itself. Jeddah has an extraordinary culinary scene with kebabs and sushi with a touch of middle eastern spices. Al Khayam is a popular restaurant in Jeddah where you can dine like a king. Red and gold colours dominate the decor of the restaurant. You will find a variety of kebabs and masto-khiar here with a selection of caviars. Piatto prides itself in serving authentic and the most delicious Italian cuisine. For all you vegetarians out there, The Bellevue is a diner that serves not only middle eastern food but also has vegetarian food on its menu. You can head over to Ajji next door to try sushi and other Asian food. Toki is another popular restaurant that serves Chinese, Malaysian and Thai food. You can also head to Ginza I Chome if you are craving for some sushi. You can also try some authentic Turkish cuisine at Khayal. Don't forget to save some room for kunafa dessert if you are visiting this restaurant.
How to reach Jeddah (Transportation)
King Abdulaziz International Airport is the main airport in Saudi Arabia. The flight connectivity to Jeddah from India is excellent. Gulf Air, Oman Air, Saudi Arabian Airlines have frequent flights to Jeddah with layovers in Manama, Muscat and Al Madinah. If you book your flights well in advance, you might come across decent flight deals to Jeddah. In fact, you will get cheap flight tickets to Jeddah quite easily. The airport has a separate Hajj terminal for the pilgrims who are travelling to the city to head to the holy city of Mecca. Jeddah is quite close to Mecca, which is a very important place of worship for Muslims. The Hajj terminal can accommodate up to 80,000 passengers at a time and has facilities for people to perform their rituals for the annual Hajj.
About KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, professionally known as Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij, is the national flag carrier of the Netherlands. The airline has its headquarters in Amstelveen with its main hub in Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The airline is part of the Air France - KLM group and is also a member of the SkyTeam airline alliance. It was founded in 1919 and is easily the oldest airline in the world, which is over a century old. Despite being in the aviation industry for 100 years, KLM has not undergone a rebranding in terms of its name. As of 2015, the airline accommodated 35,488 employees and had a fleet size of 119. KLM operates as a scheduled passenger and cargo carrier with services to over 145 destinations worldwide. The airline's first flight, following its establishment in 1919, took place in 1920 from Croydon Airport in London to Amsterdam. For the same, a leased Aircraft Transport and Travel de Havilland DH - 16 was used. It carried two British journalists along with some newspapers. The same year, the airline also carried about 440 passengers along with 22 tonnes of freight.
KLM made its international debut by flying its first international flight to Jakarta and Java, which were part of the Dutch colony and called Dutch East Indies during that period. The airline expanded its wings and acquired more destinations in Europe such as Rotterdam, Brussels, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Malmö, Bremen, Paris and London. With the onset of World War II, the flight operations were put on hold as all the aircraft was shifted to Britain following an invasion by Germany. Post World War II, the airline underwent some significant losses. The Dutch government expressed its desire to gain more stakes in the airline and nationalised it in the process. However, under Albert Plesman's leadership, KLM did not agree to the deal and continued to be a private entity. But as he passed away in 1953, the Ditch government intervened to save KLM from the economic crisis and eventually nationalised the airline. KLM entered the Jet age by acquiring the four-engine turboprop aircraft of Vickers Viscount 800 in 1959. They also acquired the first Douglas DC-8 jet to join their fleet. The following years witnessed quite a few leadership changes as many of the presidents who took office in KLM suffered from health issues or accidents and deaths.
By 1975, KLM started adding Boeing combi aircraft in its fleet which predominantly consisted of Douglas DC-8 aircraft. The idea was to introduce flights that would cater to passengers as well as carry freight. This was followed by some significant changes in the airline's fleet as they started acquiring more Boeing and Airbus aircraft to replace the Douglas planes. The airline also suffered from some economic crisis which led to the Dutch government intervening once again to take up more shares in the venture and bring it out of losses. In 1995, KLM managed to stabilise its finances and buy back the shares from the Dutch government yet again to become a private company. In 2003, the airline agreed to merge with Air France and become partners to the subsidiary Air France - KLM. While retaining their own brands, the Air France - KLM subsidiary's key hubs became Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. Air France - KLM was also listed on the Euronext exchanges in Paris, Amsterdam as well as New York. The same year, KLM and Northwest joined the airline alliance SkyTeam.
KLM celebrated its centennial in 2019 as it was founded in 1919. As an airline that has managed to sustain for an entire century and to operate under its original name with no rebranding or renaming, KLM is the first airline in the world to have achieved such a feat. It has also been the recipient of several accolades included Best Airline Staff Service in Europe which was recognised at the World Airline Awards 2013.
Fleet size of KLM
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has a fleet size of 116 which includes aircraft such as Airbus A330-200, Boeing 737-800, Boeing 777-300ERs and more. The airline's fleet mainly consists of a series of Boeing aircraft with variants of Airbus A330 model. The fleet size includes the cargo fleet too, which comprises four Boeing 747-400ERFs. The airline's first of the eight Boeing 787-10 aircraft were delivered in 2019, which also marked its centennial in the aviation industry. In 2013, the airline ordered seven Airbus A350-900s to join the fleet. However, in 2019, the Air France - KLM airline announced that they would not be taking any of KLM's ordered A350s for fleet rationalisation purposes. In the same year, KLM's CEO made an announcement at Air France's Investor Day that the airline will only be accommodating and utilising 777 and 787 aircraft from Boeing for their long-haul flight journeys. With this, they plan to retire thirteen of their A330s. The aim is to make KLM an all-Boeing airline which has room for no other aircraft.
Baggage Allowance
KLM Royal Airlines' baggage allowance follows the standard protocols set by global aviation. Passengers travelling from the economy class will be required to carry a weight of maximum 23 kg and a combined dimension of 158 cm. However, passengers who are part of SkyTeam Elite, Elite Plus or members of Flying Blue Silver, Gold and Platinum programmes are allowed to carry a piece of extra baggage along with them for checked luggage. However, the weight and dimensions of the baggage must be the same as mentioned. The business class passengers are allowed to carry two items of baggage that can weigh as much as 32 kg. The dimension of the baggage should also not exceed 158 cm, the same as the economy class. However, passengers who are members of the SkyTeam elite programmes or the KLM Flying Blue programmes will receive an additional baggage piece that they can carry.
The hand baggage that can be taken in the cabin also depends on the ticket type of passenger. The economy class passengers are allowed to carry about 1 item of hand baggage along with an accessory bag which could be a laptop bag, briefcase, handbag, etc. The collective weight of the hand baggage should not exceed 12 kg, and the dimension should not go beyond 55 x 35 x 25 cm for the luggage and 40 x 30 x 15 cm for an accessory bag. With the same criteria for the business class' hand baggage, the airline does offer two pieces of bags instead of one, and the total weight cannot exceed 18 kg.
In-flight services
KLM's in-flight services cater to the comfort and convenience of the passengers who are travelling with the airline. Right from exquisite seating arrangement equipped with best facilities like legroom, personal lamp, entertainment system to amazing in-flight meals, KLM has the best in-flight services to offer.
Popular routes and top cities for KLM
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines' illustrious history in the aviation industry goes back a hundred years. They have since extended their domestic routes and international routes phenomenally by acquiring services to a slew of destinations. What started as a 12-days long flight between Amsterdam to Batavia (present-day Jakarta) has since witnessed tremendous growth in terms of catering to many cities in the world. Currently, the airline services two domestic routes while connecting with 133 international route destinations that are spread across 66 countries.
Some of the top cities for KLM include Buenos Aires, Graz, Vienna, Manama, Rio de Janeiro, Brussels, Calgary, Montreal, Toronto, Beijing, Shanghai, San Jose, Zagreb, Prague, Copenhagen, Quito, Helsinki, Bordeaux, Nice, Paris, Marseille, Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich, Accra, Athens, Hong Kong, Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, Jakarta, Dublin, Florence, Rome, Milan, Osaka, Tokyo-Narita, Kuwait City, Luxembourg City, Amsterdam, Lagos, Muscat, Manila, Warsaw, Lisbon, Moscow, Singapore, Cape Town, Seoul, Ibiza, Madrid, Stockholm, Geneva, Bangkok, Istanbul, Dubai, Bristol, London, Manchester, New York City, San Francisco, Newark, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Chicago, Ho Chi Minh City and Lusaka, to name a few.
KLM also has codeshare agreements with a plethora of airlines including Aer Lingus, Aeroflot, Air France, Air Mauritius, Bangkok Airways, Alitalia, China Airlines, Copa Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Etihad Airways, Kenya Airways, Korean Air, Malaysia Airlines, Oman Air, Saudia, Qantas, Sichuan Airlines, Vietnam Airlines, WestJet and XianmenAir, to name a few.
Why travel by KLM?
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is a legacy that is recognised worldwide for being the oldest airline. The company has grown with time and further worked on constantly engaging their loyal customers with the best of in-flight services and flight experience. Passengers can do web check-ins on the airline's website as well as a mobile app. They can further book a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines flight ticket too and get updates on the flight status. For passengers to need to know more about the KLM flight schedules, the same can be found on the airline's official website. The option to book KLM flights are also available on various other travel websites.
