AlUla Wellness Festival Unveils Array of Innovative Nature-Centric Activities

AlUla Moments has unveiled new insights to enhance visitor engagement and foster their connection with nature in AlUla during the 3rd edition of AlUla Wellness Festival.
AlUla Moments has unveiled new insights to enhance visitor engagement and foster their connection with nature in AlUla during the 3rd edition of AlUla Wellness Festival.
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AlUla Wellness Festival Unveils Array of Innovative Nature-Centric Activities

AlUla Moments has unveiled new insights to enhance visitor engagement and foster their connection with nature in AlUla during the 3rd edition of AlUla Wellness Festival.
AlUla Moments has unveiled new insights to enhance visitor engagement and foster their connection with nature in AlUla during the 3rd edition of AlUla Wellness Festival.

AlUla Moments has unveiled new insights to enhance visitor engagement and foster their connection with nature in AlUla during the 3rd edition of AlUla Wellness Festival, scheduled from October 19 to November 4, said SPA on Sunday.
The festival will include new activities: The Heritage Restoration Experience, Reviving Nature Experience, and Eco-Gardening. There are also other offers, such as the Silent Hike, that allow visitors to connect with the silence of the natural deserts and canyons of AlUla.
The activities are designed to help attendees establish a meaningful connection between the human mind and soul with the wonders of nature through a collection of mind, body, and soul-revitalizing activities, providing the chance to interact with wellness enthusiasts, yoga practitioners, and meditation experts.
Rami Al-Moallim, Vice President, Destination Management and Marketing at the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU), said: "Celebrating the beauty of the natural wonders of AlUla at this edition of Wellness Festival is not just about finding wellness in ourselves, but also in the world around us. Nature, with its timeless serenity, serves as our greatest wellness partner.”
Below are the top activities to connect with nature during the festival: Heritage Restoration Experience (Date: October 19 to November 30). The Heritage Restoration, as the name implies, offers visitors a unique opportunity to engage with AlUla's cultural heritage by delving into the art of mudbrick house construction. This hands-on experience allows participants to learn about and actively participate in the creation of these traditional structures.
This event is suitable for those who are interested in engaging with the history of AlUla, and would like to leave a lasting impact during their time in AlUla. The ticket price is inclusive of a welcome drink, continued refreshments throughout the experience, necessary vests and PPE to be worn during the construction process, and a souvenir to take home.
Reviving Nature Experience (Date: October 19 to November 30). An immersive journey that allows visitors to learn about circular design whilst working with palm fronds from AlUla's farms. Participants will actively engage in weaving individual petals by hand, which will then be placed on our monumental sculpture named “Tanafaas” (In Arabic means: Breath). This experience shares the importance of a collective vision towards sustainability, promoting environmental consciousness, and fostering a connection to nature.
The Reviving Nature Experience combines creativity, education, and community to bring to life a sculpture which will stand as an example of how everyone has a role to play as an individual, which comes together to collectively make an impact!
The ticket price is inclusive of a 70-minute weaving workshop, a 10-minute natural dyes workshop, a welcome drink, continued refreshments throughout the experience, necessary aprons and PPE to be worn during the event, and a souvenir for each attendee to take home. The total duration will be 2 hours including the welcome orientation.
Eco Gardening (Date: Oct 20, 2023 - Mar 06, 2024). Exploring the rich agricultural and floral heritage of AlUla's Oasis through Eco Gardening within the AlUla Wellness Festival. Guests are invited to immerse themselves in the vibrant Oasis environment through an eco-gardening experience.
It's a chance to connect with the local farmers and meet the animals they care for, providing a deeper understanding of this unique ecosystem. This event is free to attend however spaces must be booked via experiencealula.com.
The Silent Hike (Tuesdays, Thursdays & Saturdays, depart 8 am, return 11:30 am).The Silent Hike offers an unforgettable opportunity for visitors—a journey through the Hidden Valley in the Arabian Desert. This 4 km hike provides a chance to disconnect from technology, engage in reflection, meditation, and savor the breathtaking natural splendor of AlUla. The experience culminates with a refreshing cold towel and revitalizing beverages.
Moreover, the popular Sanctuary Five experience is making a comeback, offering a holistic health journey involving yoga and salt room therapy. Visitors can engage in a diverse range of activities and workshops, all aimed at promoting relaxation and inner harmony.
For more information about the AlUla Wellness Festival 2023 and ticket details, please visit the website www.experiencealula.com.



In Show Stretched over 50 Years, Slovenian Director Shoots for Space

The first performance took place in 1995, and the last one will be in 2045. Jure Makovec / AFP
The first performance took place in 1995, and the last one will be in 2045. Jure Makovec / AFP
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In Show Stretched over 50 Years, Slovenian Director Shoots for Space

The first performance took place in 1995, and the last one will be in 2045. Jure Makovec / AFP
The first performance took place in 1995, and the last one will be in 2045. Jure Makovec / AFP

In an innovative show directed by Slovenian artist and space enthusiast Dragan Zivadinov, a crew of actors is putting on the same play once a decade over 50 years.

And if they die before the half-century run of performances ends? They are replaced by satellite-like devices that the director says will eventually be launched into space.

"If you ask me who will be the audience of these emancipated, auto-poetic devices -- it will be the Sun!" Zivadinov, 65, told AFP after the latest staging in the remote Slovenian town of Vitanje last month.

The first performance in the series took place on April 20, 1995, in the capital Ljubljana; the second was in Star City, a town outside Moscow that has prepared generations of Soviet and Russian cosmonauts. And the last one will be in 2045.

This time, 12 actors, most of them in their sixties, took part, wearing futuristic monochrome coveralls and dancing along a spaceship-like cross-shaped stage made of monitors.

Two so-called "umbots" -- artistic satellite-like devices emitting sounds -- replaced actors who have died since 1995.

'Makes you think'

Hundreds turned up to watch the play, "Love and Sovereignty", a tragedy set in the early 17th century by Croatian playwright Vladimir Stojsavljevic. It deals with power and art and features English playwright William Shakespeare as a character.

"It is an interesting experience, makes you think," Eneja Stemberger, who studies acting in Ljubljana, told AFP after watching the packed show.

Tickets offered for free online quickly ran out, but the organizers allowed even those who came without tickets to watch the show, standing or sitting on the floor.

German art consultant Darius Bork told AFP that he had already seen the play 10 years ago, describing Zivadinov's work as "absolutely fantastic".

Zivadinov became internationally recognized in the 1980s as one of the founders of Slovenia's avant-garde movement Neue Slowenische Kunst (New Slovenian Art), which criticized totalitarian regimes in then-Communist Yugoslavia.

At the end of the century, Zivadinov turned to develop "post-gravity art".

He also helped set up a space research center in Vitanje, named after the early space travel theorist Herman Potocnik, who went by the pseudonym of Noordung and whose work inspired Stanley Kubrick's film "2001: A Space Odyssey".

The Center Noordung hosted this year's and the 2015 performance.

The "Noordung: 1995-2025-2045" project's final performance will feature only "umbots" and so be "liberated from human influence", Zivadinov said.

At the end of the project, the "umbots" -- containing digitalized information, including the actors' DNA -- will be propelled into space to "culturize" it, he added, without detailing how he would do that.

"They will all be launched simultaneously, each one into a different direction, deep into space," he said.