By law, Saudi Arabian requires that women cover themselves with hijab and wear abaya gowns. But will I be punished if I don’t comply with that rule as a tourist in Saudi Arabia?
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By law, Saudi Arabian requires that women cover themselves with hijab and wear abaya gowns. But will I be punished if I don’t comply with that rule as a tourist in Saudi Arabia?
The Saudi state no longer intervenes on dress code for foreigners concerning wearing the Abaya or Hijab. Other than that, the dress code remains the same for women in that she must dress modestly. Avoid revealing or tightly hugging clothes. Wear loose and baggy.
In effect, all women, Muslim or otherwise, should cover from the neck down to well below the knees plus her arms should be covered too until the wrists. Even though it is not a must, I heartily recommend that you do wear the hijab when you come. You will be free of stares, gain great respect from others and your life will be much easier as you go about your day.
You probably won’t even be given a tourist visa. Anyway,I looked up “abaya”. Some look quite fashionable, so if you like the style I do not see why not. People from places that have strict dress codes that they must follow do not accept dress codes of places they visit. I have found that dress restrictions could be met through common sense in most places, and you can be respectfully dressed without adopting the local clothing. If you are coming to holy cities (madina,makkah) then it is complulsary for you to wear an abaya. Else in other cities you are free to wear any clothes if you have no problem if many strangers are staring at you without any reason! And ofcourse any clothes does not include skirts or shorts. Because you wont find any girls wearing those and it will maybe lead you to into serious trouble.