Yes — you can smoke at Abha International Airport (AHB) at the designated outdoor areas on the 1st and 2nd floors across the street from the terminal building, and after security in the smoking cabin inside the airside Hayyak Lounge, which any departing domestic passenger can enter with a lounge-membership card or a paid walk-in pass. The open areas of the terminal are smoke-free.
Abha International Airport serves the Asir region in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern highlands. Sitting at roughly 2,200 m elevation, Abha has a notably cool, mild climate by Saudi standards and is a growing domestic summer-tourism destination (the Asir mountains and Soudah), supported by Vision 2030 tourism investment. The airport handles mainly Saudia and flynas domestic traffic plus regional and seasonal international flights through a single main terminal that has been progressively expanded.
Airport Layout
Abha operates a single main passenger terminal handling domestic, regional and seasonal international flights, with one departures concourse and arrivals hall. The terminal has been expanded over time to handle rising Asir tourism demand. The two smoking points are the outdoor floors across the street from the terminal and, airside, the cabin inside the Hayyak Lounge; the open concourse itself has no smoking room.
Smoking Areas
Departures (Airside)
The after-security smoking point at Abha is a cabin inside the Hayyak Lounge, on the 1st floor. The lounge sits past passport and security control, on the left-hand side, open 24 hours with a three-hour maximum stay — and it takes lounge-membership cardholders and paid walk-ins at the door, subject to space, so an ordinary departing passenger can buy their way in rather than needing airline status. The lounge serves domestic flights; passengers on international departures use the outdoor areas across the street before clearing security. Smoking in the open gate areas, corridors and restaurants is not permitted.
Outside Terminals
Outdoor smoking is permitted on the 1st and 2nd floors across the street from the terminal building (landside). Unusually for Saudi Arabia, Abha’s highland location means mild temperatures for much of the year, so these outdoor areas are comfortable far more often than at the kingdom’s lowland airports. This is the free option and the one to use if you would rather not pay for the lounge — finish your cigarette here before clearing security.
Summary
| Area | Smoking Allowed | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Across the street from terminal | Yes | Outdoor | 1st & 2nd floors, landside; mild highland climate |
| Hayyak Lounge cabin (airside) | Yes | Indoor smoking cabin | 1st floor, past passport and security control; lounge-membership card or paid walk-in, domestic flights |
| Open terminal areas (post-security) | No | — | Smoke-free outside the lounge cabin; fines for violations |
For Saudi Arabia airport smoking rules, vaping rules, and other general info, see our Saudi Arabia smoking guide.