Diplomatic Quarter

A secure compound in the western part of Riyadh housing the embassies of most countries with diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia, along with international schools, restaurants, clubs, and recreational facilities. The Diplomatic Quarter functions almost as a separate city within Riyadh, with pedestrian-friendly streets, parks, sports facilities, and a more relaxed atmosphere than the rest of the capital.

For visitors, the DQ is mainly interesting for its restaurants (some of the best international food in the city is here), its walking paths along Wadi Hanifah at the compound's southern edge, and its well-maintained parks. Saudi nationals and foreign residents both frequent it. A passport may be required at the main gate.

things to do neighbourhood
A story
The Diplomatic Quarter was designed in the 1980s by the Greek architectural firm Bofil-Léon with an unusual brief: to create a self-contained city for the diplomatic corps of a country with almost no history of foreign residents. The result was a walled compound planned around pedestrian streets and public squares in a traditional Arab urban form — something rarely found in modern Riyadh outside the heritage districts.