Al Batha

Al Batha is a busy traditional commercial area in central Riyadh, lying east of the Qasr Al-Hukm and Deira district and extending along both sides of Al Batha Street. Its name comes from Wadi Al Batha, a watercourse that once ran beside the old town before it was built over.

Al Batha was among the first areas to develop outside the walls of old Riyadh when the city expanded in the mid-twentieth century. Commercial buildings, hotels and offices were built there. Large companies later moved gradually to the northern districts, and Al Batha became an extensive popular market used by people on modest incomes and by expatriate workers of many nationalities.

Its streets are crowded with wholesale and retail shops selling clothes, fabrics, electronics, mobile phones, watches, perfumes and household goods, with restaurants serving a range of Asian and Arab food, and with exchange and money-transfer offices. Al Batha represents an important stage in the modern urban history of Riyadh, and it remains one of the city's liveliest markets.