Al-Kalada Heritage Village

Al-Kalada Heritage Village is a historic village located in the Bani Saad Center in Taif Governorate, west of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It features buildings constructed on the mountain peak that shares its name, situated in the center of Wadi as-Sayayil. The village is distinguished by the interconnectedness of its buildings, forming a unique architectural model of stone architecture in the region.

Al-Kalada Heritage Village is one of the largest ancient villages in Bani Saad. It consists of a series of interconnected stone buildings. At the top of the mountain on which the village is built stand two tall, multi-story defensive forts. In the center of the village, there is a mosque and a square used for celebrations and official gatherings. The stone buildings in the village are divided into residences, silos, food storage facilities, main meeting halls, and two main entrances known as the Upper Path and the Lower Path, both leading to the village homes. The defensive forts are decorated with white quartz stone, forming some cultural elements on the exterior. These forts served as protection for commercial activities and as a defense against external attacks on the village.

Al-Kalada Heritage Village embodies a model that reflects the close-knit community of its inhabitants during the era of its establishment and across the mountains of Bani Saad Center. The village’s closely spaced buildings form a distinctive architectural pattern. Surrounding the village are mountains with valleys filled with vineyards, peach orchards, and scenic trees such as Ziziphus spina-christi, acacia, and juniper. The village attracts visitors as it preserves its stone buildings, which have retained their structure and architectural heritage for hundreds of years. Additionally, the village includes numerous traditional beehives, known as "as-samat," which the locals once relied on for extracting honey of various types and seasons to sell and invest in.