Riyadh Local Custom Tips by anees

Saudi Arabian shops closes two times during after noon and evening hours, Magrab and Esha prayers.
I recommend that you plan your shopping either before Magrab pray time (sunset time) or after Esha Prayer (In summer time after 8:30 pm).
Some restaurants and large shops are allowing shoppers to remain inside their place while they close their doors for prayer time, so if you plan to eat out and committed to meet people just 10 minutes before prayers time for dinner, so you better be in hurry and get in the resaturant and make your order before the pray time, so you can enjoy your food while its close.
Ikea furniture store is allowing its shoppers to remain inside, and its large enough to tour it, and it has its praying place to who want to practice his religion.
There are possiblity to have other closing time such as Dhoher for banks, and Aser if you want to fill your car with fuel. Its rare that you have to wait for Fajer prayer unless you are going to one of these coffee shops that remain open till morning.

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Execpt for Several main shopping centers, most of them just allow families to come in, especially in weekends.

I found it annoying to see some young kids banned to enter, as I haven't face any problem with that, seems I look well-mannered to be allowed comming in.

You will find more openness in Jeddah and Al Kobar in term of having female shoppers not wearing head scarfs.

(From The Millennium Adventure Home Page -http://www.jimrogers.com/ - I found this and I wanted to Share with you)

20 November 2000 – Shopping in Saudi Arabia is a vastly different experience. No women work in any of the shopping centers – not at the cosmetics counters, shoe section or lingerie area – except for a few non-Saudi nationals working as cleaning women in the female toilets.

And there are a handful of ‘female-only’ shopping malls where all the workers are women, but again these are rare. So far in all the shops I've visited, I have met only one employee out of scores who actually knew anything about what he was selling.
Most of the male workers appear bored – perhaps since few customers exist, or else enamored with one another carrying on and laughing, instead of helping potential buyers or even taking money from eager customers.
But even more frustrating is there are no fitting rooms! No fitting rooms. Of course this makes perfect sense according to Sharia Law, as the male employees working in the shops cannot intermingle with women trying on clothes.
I asked a worker at Zara International where I should try on my potential buys and he said, “You must buy the things, take them home and return anything you do not want within the next three days.”

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