Operated by Kerten Hospitality , the unique 30-room eco-boutique community, designed in collaboration with Egyptian architect Shahira Fahmy , is located in the heart of AlUla’s Old Town – a maze of 12th-century mud and stone-brick buildings arranged around a 10th-century castle.
Built using the same materials and architectural techniques as the 900 surviving traditional houses of AlUla Old Town, Dar Tantora The House Hotel occupies the southern end of AlUla’s heritage-listed Old Town, with some of the surviving houses converted into luxurious, multi-storey, exquisite accommodation.
AlUla is a globally significant cultural heritage site in northwestern Arabia that was home to various civilizations for 7,000 years and was located at the intersection of the historic trade route, the Incense Road. The Old City of AlUla was built as a new city center in the Islamic era. Facing a shady and cool palm oasis and surrounded by fountains, the city was a welcome respite for pilgrims passing through AlUla on their way to Mecca.
The design and construction of Dar Tantora The House Hotel includes 30 clay-clad dars (rooms) and suites, an infinity pool, gym, yoga and meditation studio, spa, and hotel restaurant. Built using traditional techniques and materials, the hotel is lit by candlelight and uses expertly restored original irrigation and ventilation systems that minimise energy consumption and environmental impact. Shahira Fahmy’s team worked together with the founder of EQI (Environmental Quality International) Dr. Mounir Neamatalla.
Architect Shahira Fahmy – a Harvard scholar described by Phaidon as “one of the architects shaping the Arab future” and recently named to RIBA’s list of 100 women: Architects in Practice – worked closely with specialist restoration teams and traditional local craftsmen to reconstruct the fabric of the 12th-century buildings that make up the hotel, to restore: the original mud-brick walls, the masonry, the windows and the historic murals.
The walls of Dar Tantora The House Hotel – and AlUla’s Old Town in general – are adorned with murals traditionally painted by the community as a wedding gift for newlywed couples to decorate their new home. These celebratory murals tell stories of local flora and fauna, household items, festive customs, calligraphy and abstract symbols, as well as cheerful motifs associated with themes such as abundance and happiness. Using authentic natural pigments, Fahmy and her team have restored these artistic testimonies of a changing culture to great effect.
At JOONTOS, the estate’s main restaurant, the team strives to source local ingredients by building relationships with AlUla’s farmers and suppliers and implementing a zero-waste philosophy in the kitchen. Products available in the surrounding oasis include a variety of citrus, dates, mangoes, pomegranates, and a growing selection of root vegetables as part of an agricultural training program that allows local farmers to be an integral part of the food supply chain as hospitality grows in AlUla.
The name and unique design of Dar Tantora are derived from the tantora (traditional sundial) that stands at the entrance to the property and has served as a timekeeper for centuries, determining the rhythm of daily life and the cultural rhythm of the old town of AlUla, based on the agricultural seasons. This idea of light and darkness has guided the design of the hotel in harmony with the changing seasons and temperature regulation.
Dar Tantora The House Hotel’s duplex rooms reflect traditional home life in AlUla’s Old Town, with bedrooms upstairs and living/working areas downstairs. Terraces, rooftop terraces and the infinity pool are designed to optimise views of the oasis and surrounding rocks, as well as nighttime stargazing.
The artistic and cultural heritage of AlUla is integrated into the structure of the property. Students from the nearby Madrasat Addeera – a school that teaches the tools and techniques needed to translate the traditional arts of AlUla into a modern context – exhibit their works at Dar Tantora The House Hotel. Currently on display are three artworks curated by Creative Dialogue and the works of Gregory Chatonsky, which incorporate sadu, the traditional Bedouin embroidery in which dyed camel hair is woven by hand and shaped into geometric shapes for a variety of textiles.
The residents of the old town of AlUla lived until the 1980s, when they left it in favor of more modern amenities and electricity. Some employees of Dar Tantora The House Hotel lived there and have family connections that go back several centuries. The hotel’s bread baker is a native of AlUla, who grew up in one of the mud and stone houses in the old town, where she baked the bread for her family. She tells how the community lived at that time and how the families lived on the first floor, while the ground floor was intended for the goats and chickens.
The hotel proudly celebrates the traditions and customs of the old town of AlUla. These include the annual cultural festival, the Tantora Celebration, which has been held for generations and takes place every year on December 21 and marks the beginning of winter at the Tantora Festival. This community festival with feasts, traditional music and dances marks the official transition to winter and the arrival of cool weather.
Dar Tantora The House Hotel is located in the heart of AlUla, within walking distance of the Incense Market, the AlJadidah Arts District and the Oasis, making it the ideal base for those who like to walk. The boutiques of AlUla’s Old Town sell locally produced souvenirs, art, ceramics and fashion, while restaurants such as Tawlat Fayza, Somewhere, Suhail and Heart of the Oasis offer a mix of local cuisine and international dishes in a unique setting.
Those who want to delve deep into the unique history and heritage of AlUla can book a number of tours with AlUla’s “rawis” (local guides), which also include nearby heritage sites such as Hegra, Dadan and Jabal Ikmah. The calendar of events in the greater AlUla area is packed throughout the year, including the Winter at Tantora Festival, the AlUla Arts Festival, the Azimuth Music Festival, the AlUla Skies Festival, the AlUla Wellness Festival and the Ancient Kingdoms Festival.
Address
375 Old Town
43562 AlUla
Saudi Arabia
Contact
Phone: +966 53 400 3939
Email: dartantora@kertenhospitality.com
Web: https://dartantora.co/
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