The four routes coming back
Qatar Airways is restarting Doha flights to four Saudi cities it had suspended: Qassim, Taif, Yanbu and Tabuk. Qassim and Taif come back in October 2026, Yanbu and Tabuk in January 2027. Seats are on sale now, and fares held steady across every month we priced.
Qatar Airways in Saudi Arabia this winter
All thirteen Saudi destinations
| Destination | Status this winter |
|---|---|
| Qassim (ELQ) | Resumes 25 October 2026 |
| Taif (TIF) | Resumes 31 October 2026 |
| Yanbu (YNB) | Resumes 2 January 2027 |
| Tabuk (TUU) | Resumes 3 January 2027 |
| NEOM (NUM) | Resumes in the second half of 2027 |
| Riyadh (RUH) | Already flying, 49 a week since June 2026 |
| Jeddah (JED) | Already flying |
| Dammam (DMM) | Already flying |
| Abha (ABH) | Already flying |
| AlUla (ULH) | Already flying |
| Hail (HAS) | Already flying |
| Madinah (MED) | Already flying |
| The Red Sea (RSI) | Already flying |
Qatar Airways plans more than 155 weekly flights to Saudi Arabia this winter, over ten per cent up on summer. Twelve Saudi cities will have nonstop Doha flights this winter once these four return. NEOM, the thirteenth, follows in the second half of 2027.
Questions
When do Qatar Airways flights to Qassim, Taif, Yanbu and Tabuk restart?
Qassim is first, on 25 October 2026, followed by Taif on 31 October 2026. Yanbu starts on 2 January 2027 and Tabuk on 3 January 2027.
How often does Qatar Airways fly to each city?
Twice a week on each of the four routes. Qassim flies on Fridays and Sundays, Taif and Yanbu on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and Tabuk on Thursdays and Sundays.
Can I fly from Doha to Taif and back on the same day?
No. On every one of the four routes the aircraft turns round in about an hour, and there is no later flight home that day. Because each route flies twice a week, the shortest round trip is two nights to Qassim and three nights to the other cities.
Which aircraft flies these routes?
An Airbus A320 on all four, according to the schedules loaded for sale when we sampled fares on 2 September 2026.
Are the flights on sale yet?
Yes. Qatar Airways says bookings opened with the announcement on 1 September 2026, and all four routes returned bookable fares when we searched. You can compare them on Wego.
Sources
- Qatar Airways newsroom, resumption dates, flight numbers, timings and the Saudi network list, retrieved 2 September 2026.
- Qatar Airways on X, the announcement, 1 September 2026.
- Wego flight search, fares sampled 2 September 2026 in QAR, return for one adult.
- Wego blog, which foreign airlines fly to Saudi Arabia, for the wider picture.
How these figures were produced
- Fares are the cheapest nonstop Qatar Airways return we could find on each route, for one adult in economy, searched on Wego with the Qatar market and prices in QAR.
- Each sample departs and returns on a day the route actually operates, so the price is for a trip that can be flown rather than a notional one.
- Qassim and Taif were each sampled across three separate months. The gap between the cheapest and dearest month was 28 QAR on Qassim and 9 QAR on Taif, which is why this page does not offer a cheapest-month picker.
- Yanbu and Tabuk carry a single sampled month each. Both routes only start in January 2027, and the fare service returned errors for the months after that while we were sampling.
- Schedules, weekly counts and the network list come from the airline, not from a fare feed. Wego’s timetable data returns nothing for these routes because they are not flying yet.
- Baggage is not stated here. The fare feed’s baggage field is unreliable and we did not verify allowances against Qatar Airways.
Disclaimer: We’ve worked hard to make sure the information in this article is as accurate and up to date as possible at the time of publishing. Travel details such as prices, schedules, visa rules, and entry requirements can change at short notice, so it remains your responsibility to verify the current details with official sources before you book or travel. Wego accepts no liability for any loss or inconvenience arising from the use of this content.
