Jean Nouvel carves landmark resort into AlUla mountains dating back 500 million years

Designed with reverence for its historic location, the retreat will aim for zero water waste

The guest pool at Sharaan Resort and International Summit Centre in Saudi Arabia's historic AlUla. Photo: Royal Commission for AlUla

Construction has begun on a luxury resort in Saudi Arabia's historic AlUla, designed by acclaimed French architect Jean Nouvel, the man behind a number of global landmarks including Louvre Abu Dhabi.

Sharaan Resort and International Summit Centre is being built directly into the mountains of Sharaan Nature Reserve, many of which are believed to date back more than 500 million years.

The luxury destination will comprise 38 suites, a spa and wellness centre, kids club, sport studio, all-day dining restaurant and business hub. In addition, a signature fine-dining restaurant will sit on top of the mountain with panoramic views of Sharaan, while a glass lift will connect the rest of the resort.

The resort's designs will draw on the nearby Nabataean wonders of Hegra, Saudi Arabia’s first Unesco World Heritage Site, paying tribute to a unique 2,000-year-old architectural heritage.

Inside an adjacent mountain, the Sharaan International Summit Centre will host events and leaders from around the world. Facilities will include an auditorium, meeting rooms, majlis, library and a sport and leisure area. The Summit Centre will also have 13 hospitality pavilions and two private villas.

The resort will also aim for zero water waste by using potable water only when needed and by recycling all treatable wastewater for irrigation and other purposes.

“Sharaan resort is our most ambitious project currently under construction. The resort was designed with complete reverence for the human and natural history of AlUla, and we are committed to sustainable building practices in line with this same philosophy,” said Mohammed Altheeb, Royal Commission for AlUla's chief development and construction officer.

Speaking of the project in 2020, Nouvel described AlUla as “the coming together of a landscape and history.”

“AlUla is a museum. Every wadi and escarpment, every stretch of sand and rocky outline, every geological and archaeological site deserves the greatest consideration.” he said. “It’s vital we keep all its distinctiveness and conserve its attractiveness, which largely rests on its remote and occasionally archaic character. We have to safeguard a little mystery as well as the promise of discoveries to come.”

But this does not mean that the site cannot be injected with a hint of modernity, he added.

“Our project should not jeopardise what humanity and time have consecrated,” he said. “Our project is celebrating the Nabataean spirit without caricaturing it. This creation genuinely becomes a cultural act.”

A completion date for Sharaan Resort and International Summit Centre has not been revealed.