Spring is around the corner, which means that the city of Taif will be covered in a hue of pink as the city’s prized roses bloom. There’s so much to them that, unfortunately, a lot of people don’t know about.

Well, Bayt Fann, who are known for their incredible Twitter threads, finally did one on them. Needless to say, it’s super insightful.

1/ Thanks to its favorable climate, Taif is home to nearly a thousand rose farms, with aromatic blossoms stretching from Wadi Mahram to Al-Hada. This is perhaps why the city of Taif is no stranger to festivals themed around roses pic.twitter.com/uzejAgFga0

— Bayt Al Fann (@BaytAlFann) December 13, 2022

Don’t forget to stock up on that rose oil on your next trip to the city.

3/ Every spring, farmers head to the fields to harvest beautiful rose petals. They pick tens of thousands of flowers each day to produce rose water and oil, also prized components in the cosmetic and culinary industries pic.twitter.com/kPEyU7YOWN

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— Bayt Al Fann (@BaytAlFann) December 13, 2022

If you’re visiting Taif during the spring, you deffo have to make it a point to visit a rose farm—the smell of fragrant roses just lingers in the air. Bliss!

6/ Known as the city of roses, with approximately 300 million blooms every year, Taif has more than 800 flower farms, many of which have opened their doors to visitors pic.twitter.com/Q8625qqX5E

— Bayt Al Fann (@BaytAlFann) December 13, 2022

Here’s a fun fact about them.

7/ However, a few centuries ago Taif rose petals were not distilled in Taif at all. They were gathered & transported by camel caravan to the Muslim holy city of Mecca where artisanal Indian distillers were responsible for gently pressing the flowers & extracting the precious oil pic.twitter.com/abSDrJlEPh

— Bayt Al Fann (@BaytAlFann) December 13, 2022

It remains a mystery to this day.

11/ With similarities to the famous Bulgarian Kazanlik rose, some say it was brought to Saudi Arabia by the Ottoman Turks, who once ruled a vast empire over much of the Arabian peninsula. Others claim that it came from the Persian rose plantations around Shiraz & Kashan, or India pic.twitter.com/jCiPfnuWRd

— Bayt Al Fann (@BaytAlFann) December 13, 2022

Wedding gift ideas, anyone?

18/ Because Taif rose is so exceptionally rare – with anywhere between 10,000 and 15,000 hand-picked roses creating just a small vial of oil – it is the ultimate gesture to honour a guest with a dab on their wrist or bestow a newly-married couple with a vial as a wedding gift pic.twitter.com/MgeOIg6Y7L

— Bayt Al Fann (@BaytAlFann) December 13, 2022

Convinced to visit Taif during the winter break?

21/ Even though the city of Taif is miles away from France, the phrase ‘La Vie en Rose’ can express the beauty and joy that Taif roses illuminate. A joy that must be experienced at least once in a lifetime. pic.twitter.com/mO4lilt6f6

— Bayt Al Fann (@BaytAlFann) December 13, 2022