Weathermen have described it as normal though.

“This is quite normal at this time of the year,” said Mohammad Al-Qahtani, director of the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment at King Fahd International Airport in Dammam. “This is winter time and it does get this cold.” In fact, he said, temperatures may still drop further making it even chillier.

Mohammad Mosayyen, a forecaster at the meteorology department, said Dammam recorded a minimum of 6 degrees Celsius on Tuesday morning. “We will have a similar weather pattern till the third week of March.” He expected daytime temperatures to hover between 14 and 18 degrees Celsius.

Al-Qahtani said thankfully there are not many dust storms this year “which is quite a relief.” He said largely due to good rains this year, the landscape in the countryside has turned slightly green and “we have this pleasant weather.” He said the entire Kingdom, except for some cities such as Yanbu and Jizan, are experiencing cold weather.

Interestingly, the cold weather has prompted many adventure-seeking Saudis to head to An-Nariya and Safaniya cities that are right in the middle of the desert. “People love to camp in the desert during these days,” said journalist Mutlaq Al-Anazi. “This has been a tradition in the Eastern Province. Soon we will have a 10-day mid-term school break and you will notice a large number of families heading to An-Nariya.”

An-Nariya is a small city with a population of around 60,000 and has a good, asphalt road leading to it. “This is the same road that heads to Hafr Al-Batin, Jordan and Syria. The municipality in An-Nariya looks forward to this season. The whole city wears a festive look during these days. We see Saudi families camping in the desert and huddling around bonfires in the evening,” he said. “Spending cold nights under clear starry skies is nothing short of an heavenly experience,” said Al-Anazi.