Shadowjack you have me curious now as I've always found your advice here on the forum to be pretty sound. Perhaps you could include some examples of schools that are in "exotic locations" that aren't "tropical and warm" but are otherwise great places to work?

I currently live and teach in Kuwait but have never lived in the UAE and only had a sort visit there so I can't say much for that comparison except that I have talked to lots of people who have been to both.
If things like alcohol and pork are an important part of your life then Kuwait isn't going to be your favorite place. People make their own beer and what not, but I find that a lot of people who need it in their lives take weekend trips more than I would ever think about.
My wife hasn't ever been t harassed, even when out without me. None of the female teachers at my school have complained about it either and I've heard a few comment on how safe they feel. There are parts of the city that I've heard are different like Mabulla (spellings vary), but they are getting yelled at by non western expat men, not Kuwaitis it seems.
If you like spending a lot of time in malls then Kuwait is good. I think as far as other things to do you might find the UAE better. Kuwait is small and pretty flat so you can go to a beach (if you drive you can get to beaches outside the city that are better than the ones in the city) or you can go to the mall and not a ton more than that. I know that there are also some really horrible schools in Kuwait too.
School wise I think you can find bad schools in both countries. I certainly know that not all of the schools in the UAE are great. My school here (one of the bigger ones) is pretty good. I have no complaints about that.
All that said, my family lives a pretty happy life here and when we have longer holidays we travel. It's not the best place in the world, but it's not the horror story people make it out to be.

I lived in Riyadh for two years and can say that Shadowjack has the best/most reliable info about living in Riyadh. If safety is your only concern I can say that for me and my family we felt totally safe all of the time. We generally found people (Saudis) to be aloof tending to mind their own business, but friendly and curious once you start talking to them. Other non western expats loved seeing and talking to us and were super friendly. I can honestly say that I was out in the city and surrounding desert a lot more than most of the other expats I knew and never felt unsafe at all, even with the horrible driving (I'll admit that I learned quickly to drive like a local). We lived on a compound but if I were to go back (which I would at the right school) I'm not sure that I would want to live on a compound. We didn't really like the compound life that much and would not like living at one of the bigger/nicer compounds at all, but I recognize that that is just my personal feeling about it.
The bigger question is the school that you think is a perfect fit. IMHO, I'm not sure that there is a perfect school in Riyadh at all. AISR or the British school are clearly the best, but most teachers say that they work you really hard. I'd like more of a balance in my life and don't want to work somewhere that thinks they own me or something like that.
Final thoughts, we (whole family including teenage daughter) loved living in Riyadh, were sad to leave (poor fit at the school we were at forced us to look elsewhere) and could be persuaded to return to the Kingdom.

My process was anything but smooth, but it worked out in the end. My school was pretty on top of things and it still didn't get done until June. Feel free to PM me for specifics. Riyadh'a an interesting place and an adventure for sure. A lot of what people tell you is either exaggerated, or just wrong. Yes it's hot, yes it's desert, yes things are different, but it's livable, there are plenty of things to do if your interested and the people are great if you give them a chance. Come with an open mind and you'll get a lot out of it.
Good luck with the Visa process

It's mostly (likely all) Saudi students. If there are any other nationalities represented at the school they would likely be Egyptian, or some other Arab nation. The kids will speak Arabic all the time but are likely very fluent in English. I know there is an IB option at the school and it's a private school. I've heard kids at my school say that the kids there are really bad. And while I don't believe a lot of what students say about stuff like this as a general rule, my kids are a real handful and I can't see King Faisal being any better. I'm sure that the school has a hard time recruiting western teachers. If you're looking to be in KSA and want to teach at a true international school look to AISR, the British school, or the French school.

I know that isn't much help, but it's all I have.

I think Shadowjack has discussed this in some length, so I'll just echo his words really. I don't think it matters where you live in KSA it's all about what you make of it. Fine dude says Jeddah is more livable, probably true in a lot of ways. It's more relaxed in Jeddah maybe, women can wear colored abyahs. But I know a few expats who live in Riyadh that used to live in Jeddah that prefer to live in Riyadh. I'ts more about how you choose to deal with it than it is about where you live I think.
I live in Riyadh and like it. I'm a man and have a family, and am not into alcohol or parties and Riyadh suits me fine. I get out on the weekends to see interesting things, and go out of my way to socialize. For most people they limit themselves to friends at work and at the compound and complain that it's limited.

To answer your question, I couldn't say for sure, but Riyadh is a lot bigger and thus likely has the bigger expat population.

I also know someone who has worked at ALS. It has it's issues, but what school doesn't? As to passports, they said it was a non issue. The school took them to process iqamas, then gave them back. No hostage situation at all. I believe thst Saudi law says you can't hold both an iqama and a passport at the same time, but this school seems to be an exception in that reguard.

As one door closes another opens and boy do things move quickly. We had an interview that we thought would go somewhere and it didn't, then all of a sudden a new school came on our radar. We were actually able to have a f2f interview and it went great. Then they rejected us, then three days later they said they wanted a Skype interview. Now we have a job offer that is relly good for us and we are taking it =]

So for everyone out there still looking. Never count yourselves out, you never know when it will happen. Good luck to you all and a big thanks for all the support and advice.

Thanks for the encouragement.

So lots of people talk about jobs gotten after the recruiting season, is that really a reality? If so whats the best strategy? Where are the schools that are most likely to have late season jobs?

With the making less than 96K thing, is is dependent on being out of the US a certain number of days? I don't quite get that part.

How Low is low? I haven't seen anything to say where they are for salary at all except that I too had heard that it was low compared to others, but what does that mean really?

And some sort of healthcare coverage? Most do so I'd assume they do too.
So what makes it not top tier (at least for the region)? Is the salary super low?

@Wiscokid: Did they give you any info about their benefits package in the interview you had with them?

@WiscoKid: Thanks for the info. I'm just trying to get a time frame as they have positions that I could fit into. It wasn't my top choice either, but after doing a little reading I think it sounds cool.