Ta'if, Makkah Province, Saudi Arabia

🇸🇦 Taif is a city and governorate in the Mecca Region of Saudi Arabia. Located at an elevation of 1,879 m (6,165 ft) in the slopes of the Hejaz Mountains, which themselves are part of the Sarawat Mountains, the city is the 6th most populous city in the kingdom.

There is a belief that Taif is indirectly referred to in Quran 43:31. The city was visited by the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, sometime in the early 7th century and was inhabited by the tribe of Banu Thaqif and is still inhabited to this day by their descendants. As a part of the Hejaz, the city has seen many transfers-of-power throughout its history, with the last being during the Saudi conquest of Hejaz in 1925.

The city has been called the unofficial summer capital of Saudi Arabia and has also been called the best summer destination in Saudi Arabia as it enjoys a moderate weather during summer, unlike most of the Arabian Peninsula. The city owes its popularity among tourists to its many mountain resorts and moderate climate, even during the harsh summers of Arabia. The city is connected to the nearby resort town of al-Hada via the iconic Highway 15 (Taif–al-Hada Road). It stands out from the rest of the Hejaz region as it is a city that plays an active role in the agricultural output of Saudi Arabia and is the centre of an agricultural area known for its cultivation of grapes, pomegranate, figs, roses and honey. Taif is also very active in the manufacturing of traditional 'Ittar, and is known locally as the City of Roses (Madinat al-Wurud). Taif also hosts the historic Souq 'Okaz.

The Taif governorate is divided into 15 smaller municipalities, with Ta'if as the capital. The administration of the city itself is carried out by 5 municipalities, named North Taif, West Taif, East Taif, South Taif and New Taif. Taif is served by the Taif Regional Airport, with a new international airport planned to open sometime in 2020.

Economy Historically, Ta'if's economy depended on agriculture and the cultivation of roses, which were traded throughout Central Asia and Transoxiana.

Ta'if's modern economy is still mostly dependent on agriculture and perfumes, but an increasing diversification project has been taking place in order to combat the city's heavy dependence on these two industries. Due to the cultivation of grains such as wheat and the fruit orchards in the city, it has been called the "garden of the Hejaz". The distilled rose oil from the Rosa × damascena plant has been traditionally used as an 'ittar in the Middle East, usually as a masculine fragrance, and due to its cultivation in Ta'if, it has gained the name "Ta'if rose".

On October 1, 2017, King Salman of Saudi Arabia inaugurated the "New Ta'if" project, a $3.9 billion project aiming at establishing a new, international airport in the city, dubbed the Ta'if International Airport, renovation and modernisation of the historic Souk 'Okaz, establishment of the Oasis of Technology, which is expected to include an Antonov aircraft manufacturing and assembly plant, an industrial airport with a 3.5-km runway, a solar farm covering 25,000 square meters (269,100 sq ft) expected to produce 30 MW of electricity, the Residential Suburb, which is expected to include 10,000 residential units, the Industrial City, an 11 square kilometer (4.25 sq mi) industrial city with a complex for heavy, medium and light industries along with a vocational training centre, and the University City, 16 square kilometer (6.2 sq mi) university projected to be built in the Saiysad National Park.