--- description: The move will mark a historic first since Saudi Arabia banned the consumption of alcohol in 1952. title: Saudi Arabia Breaks Tradition With its First Liquor Store image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt82484348a05fc714/698a441e4ee2629ff631c258/jack-daniels-alcohol.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Saudi Arabia](/tag/saudi-arabia/) ## Saudi Arabia Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Saudi Arabia Breaks Tradition With Its First Liquor Store ## Video: U.K. Leader Says New Strikes on Houthis Were In ‘Response To a Persistent Threat’ [Watch (HLS stream): U.K. Leader Says New Strikes on Houthis Were In ‘Response To a Persistent Threat’](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/LfjATyu5.m3u8) (2:41)  _Published 2024-01-23. The U.S. and British militaries bombed multiple targets in eight locations used by the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen on Monday night._  by [Armani Syed](/author/armani-syed/)  ## Armani Syed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Syed was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau. Jan 24, 2024 7:21 PM CUT  Jack Daniels bourbon whisky seen at Rewe supermarket. Jack Daniels bourbon whisky seen at Rewe supermarket.Igor Golovniov—SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images  by [Armani Syed](/author/armani-syed/)  ## Armani Syed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Syed was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau. Jan 24, 2024 7:21 PM CUT In a break from long standing religious tradition, Saudi Arabia is set to open its first ever liquor store within a few weeks. The decision—led by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman—is historic for the kingdom, which has enforced stringent prohibition measures against alcohol since it was first banned in 1952\. The consumption of alcohol is forbidden in Islam, but the incoming store will only sell alcohol to non-Muslims in Riyadh’s diplomatic quarter, and authorization must be sought through an app called Diplo, Reuters reported. Approved diplomats are not permitted to bring guests or any person under the age of 21 into the store, and photography is not permissible. Additional measures will see mobile phones locked in secure pouches while shopping in the store. A monthly quota will also be applied on each registered diplomat. ### More From TIME Saudi Arabia is home to an alcohol black market and illegal imports take place through embassy smuggling whereby diplomatic pouches can cross borders without facing legal procedures. While other Gulf states, such as the United Arab Emirates, allow people to have some access to alcohol in licensed establishments. In a statement on Wednesday, the Saudi government said the new regulatory framework was an effort to “counter the illicit trade of alcohol goods and products received by diplomatic missions." The statement added, "The new process will focus on allocating specific quantities of alcohol goods when entering the Kingdom to put an end to the previous unregulated process that caused an uncontrolled exchange of such goods in the Kingdom." The move is the latest in a series of daily liberalization efforts under the umbrella of Vision 2030, a strategy to diversify and build a post-oil economy through trade, tourism, and culture. In doing so, the nation has relaxed a number of religious laws. In 2017, King Salman recognized women’s right to drive and lifted a decades-old ban, with licenses granted in 2018\. That same year, a 35-year ban on cinemas was reversed as the first movie theater opened in Riyadh. But until now, people convicted of alcohol consumption faced fines, and jailtime, while visiting foreigners have faced deportation. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6588129/saudi-arabia-first-liquor-store-opens/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6588129/saudi-arabia-first-liquor-store-opens/"},"headline":"Saudi Arabia Breaks Tradition With Its First Liquor Store","datePublished":"2024-01-24T19:21:16.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T17:00:44.856Z","description":"The move will mark a historic first since Saudi Arabia banned the consumption of alcohol in 1952.","url":"https://time.com/6588129/saudi-arabia-first-liquor-store-opens/","keywords":["Saudi Arabia","News Desk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt82484348a05fc714/698a441e4ee2629ff631c258/jack-daniels-alcohol.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Armani Syed","jobTitle":"Syed was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau.","url":"https://time.com/author/armani-syed/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt82484348a05fc714/698a441e4ee2629ff631c258/jack-daniels-alcohol.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Jack Daniels bourbon whisky seen at Rewe supermarket","caption":"Jack Daniels bourbon whisky seen at Rewe supermarket.","creditText":"Igor Golovniov—SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/saudi-arabia/","name":"Saudi Arabia"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6588129/saudi-arabia-first-liquor-store-opens/","name":"Saudi Arabia Breaks Tradition With Its First Liquor Store"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"U.K. Leader Says New Strikes on Houthis Were In ‘Response To a Persistent Threat’","description":"The U.S. and British militaries bombed multiple targets in eight locations used by the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen on Monday night.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/LfjATyu5/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2024-01-23T15:20:18.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/LfjATyu5.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/6588129/saudi-arabia-first-liquor-store-opens/","duration":"PT2M41S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/6588129/saudi-arabia-first-liquor-store-opens/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```