Dammam is a city on the edge of the east, thriving with new developments and scores of curious visitors. And it has embraced the joys and thrills of theme parks with an enthusiasm few Saudi cities can match.
There is an amusement park for every occasion in Dammam – water parks inside shopping malls, a Dolphin Village, a Toy Town, an Adventure World. In the Eastern Province, theme parks are for both kids and adults, for any occasion, and at almost any time of day – whatever kind of adrenaline rush you’re looking for, our guide to the best theme parks in Dammam has everything you need.
1. Adventure World
Long established as one of the most thrilling amusement parks in Dammam and far beyond, Adventure World – a wild, colourful space not far from Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium – has an extraordinary range of rides and activities for adults and for kids. Styled from the front like a menacing medieval castle, Adventure World tilts toward the neon and surreal inside; giant mushrooms growing from the ground and foliage coiled around brightly-lit, futuristic games.
There’s space for a rambunctious round of laser tag, played over a darkened, multi-level space for maximum exhilaration; there’s the groundbreaking 7D Cinema, which takes you, the viewer, into hitherto unexplored dimensions with your movie. Should you need a break from the sensory overload, there’s a chance for a relaxing boat ride outside the main castle – a much-needed change of pace from a day of play. It’s held up as one of the best theme parks in Dammam for very good reason.
2. Dolphin Village
As one of the most extraordinary and varied aquarium spaces in all of Saudi Arabia, Dammam’s Dolphin Village is far more than a mere exhibit of aquatic life. Each day is studded with a variety of entertaining shows, where both dolphins and sea lions perform delightful displays of their natural talents, guided by their caring and attentive trainers. Their dolphins are so keen to interact that they routinely travel over to interact joyfully with visitors – an unforgettable experience, if you’ve never been up close with a dolphin before.
Aside from the shows, however, there’s a lot more to Dolphin Village: a museum space, dedicated to chronicling natural history; an arcade and a water park, for when the children want to go exploring; and a range of on-site restaurants that cater to everyone’s tastes. More than being one of the best theme parks in Dammam, it’s one of the best day excursions in the whole Eastern Province.
3. Saffori Land
Right at the top of the monumental Al Othaim Mall, one of Dammam’s best markets, sits Saffori Land. This emporium of thrills features the very cutting edge of modern gaming, alongside lolloping rides, bumper cars, and enormous recreations of classic board games. Entry prices for theme parks like these in Dammam can trend toward expensive – around 129 SAR per person. Rest assured, however, that the experience justifies the price of admission, and then some.
Once inside, you’ll have hundreds of riyals worth of credit to spend on all manner of amusements – take your pick. There’s the whirling dervish roller coaster which spins visitors through the air or the rocking, vertiginous pirate ship which swings on a pendulum. There’s arcade games with VR capabilities, immersive car simulators, and if you’d like something simpler yet no less competitive, try a game of electronic Connect 4.
4. Cobra Entertainment City
For many kids who are visiting Dammam – Cobra Entertainment City is the main attraction at the city’s enormous, 156,000-square-metre King Fahd Park. This amusement park feels like a city within a city, with attractions that keenly underscore it as one of the best theme parks in Dammam for kids and adults alike.
One thing that Cobra Entertainment City has, which is relatively scarce not too far from the vastness of the desert, is an ice rink, which enables visitors to cool their heels and skate around with abandon (if they can stand upright on the blades – always the first challenge of a new ice skater). If you’re not the ice skating kind, you ought not to miss the snaking Cobra Train, the amusement park’s most fearsome ride.
5. Toy Town Dammam
If you’re visiting with pint-sized travellers who may not be ready for the wild loops and twists of bigger, more adult-friendly amusement parks, then look no further than Toy Town – perhaps the best theme park around for little kids.
Situated just off the grand Corniche where Dammam is always at its liveliest, Toy Town has a broad variety of entertainment on hand for your little ones – from film showings, amusing musicals and educational activities to good old fashioned bouncy areas where they can crash into mats and dive into ball pits. There are even a few in-house roller coasters that are a little less fearsome than some of the city’s other theme park centrepieces. You can trust that there’ll be something for every child, and that you’ll leave after a fun day with a crew of tired, smiling faces ready for bed.
6. Splash Island
Not content with housing one of the best theme parks in Dammam with Saffori Land on its top floor, the Al Othaim Mall is also home to Dammam’s best and busiest water park, Splash Island, which you’ll find on the mall’s far-eastern wing. With an array of scintillating water slides coiled tight like springs, whipping you around the bend before flinging you back into the pool, you can guarantee a dizzyingly thrilling time.
But alongside the wild and wonderful slides, the water park’s pools are just as pleasurable for any younger ones who may prefer an afternoon of gentle, supervised paddling. There’s even space for you to rest and have a coffee at a calm enough distance to keep an eye on the kids, as they go about their splashing.
