Designing the Future of Travel: Global Leaders Gather in Saudi Arabia for World Tourism Day 2023

2023 has been full steam ahead for rail transport with a roster of new train routes and destinations announced.

The main shareholder of Piraeus Port Authority S.A., with a stake of 67 percent, is COSCO Shipping, one of the largest maritime companies in the world.

KSA-based and international falconers will compete for record total prize pot of SAR 60m ($16m) at AlUla’s Mughayra Heritage Sports Village from December 28th to January 5th.

Everywhere I turn in Athens, my past rises up to meet me. That café was once a pastry shop where our babysitter would buy us treats when I lived here as a child—pain au chocolat for my brother, lemon-filled doughnut for me. We moved to the US when I was seven, but I've returned to Greece nearly every summer since I was 14. This square is where I scored scalped tickets to the 2004 Olympics. That church is where I lit candles every year on my annual trip, in hope or gratitude: Let me do well on that exam, find a job, get pregnant.

As part of its goal to conserve and celebrate traditional heritage sports that have deep roots in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the region, and further afield, the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) will host the first-ever AlUla Falcon Cup. The landmark sporting event, taking place at AlUla’s Mughayra Heritage Sports Village from December 28th to January 5th, will promote the rich history, carefully practiced skills, and important traditions of falconry to a global audience of visiting falconers and tourists, as well as members of the AlUla community.

When you think of a cruise vacation, you probably imagine sailing the tropical waters of the Caribbean, or navigating around the Greek islands. Your brain likely isn’t conjuring images of the sandswept deserts of Saudi Arabia. But Saudi Arabia strives to make itself more attractive for international tourism — making the process of getting a visa very easy, and establishing tourism-specific destinations like NEOM and AlUla. And thanks to its efforts, it’s become a desirable new destination for Red Sea cruises. Since the first cruise to Saudi Arabia in January 2022, sailings to the kingdom have multiplied. Right now Jeddah is the country’s main cruise port, though as tourism development continues throughout the region, more ports are likely to open. Whether you’re a cruise enthusiast or a newbie, now’s the time to consider a Saudi Arabia cruise.

NEOM is central to Saudi Arabia’s push to encourage tourism and emerge as one of the world’s leading vacation destinations. Al’Ula and mega-projects inside of NEOM such as The Line and a new island destination called Sindalah have been the biggest locations to make headlines lately, but there are other moving pieces equally worthy of getting excited about. Take, for example, Leyja, a mountainous region within NEOM slated to be developed as a major tourism hub with three new futuristic hotels built right into the mountains.

At first, the idea of building an entire city in the shape of a straight line might sound puzzling. After all, wouldn’t it take that much longer to get from one end to the other? Would the traffic going from end to end be terrible? It turns out that the straight line model is actually based on efficiency of transportation, and when done right, it can be an incredible advantage to other layouts. That’s the goal with “The Line,” Saudi Arabia’s trillion-dollar futuristic city that’s an ambitious feat of engineering. The planned 105-mile long city in NEOM, in the northwest section of the country, is slated to cut across the desert in a straight line, hold nine million people, and serve as an almost utopian example of what cities could look like.

Since opening to tourists in 2019, Saudi Arabia has quickly become a world leader in travel. The country was elected as the Chair of the United Nations World Tourism Organization in 2023, and Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Tourism aims to welcome 100 million tourist visits by 2023. Such rapid growth takes massive investment — something Saudi Arabia has already proven to be more than willing to do successfully. With increased cruises bringing passengers to Saudi Arabia and a manageable visa application process, it’s hard to imagine another country more poised to dominate the global tourism market in upcoming years.

In 2019, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia officially opened its doors to international travelers, issuing tourist visas for the first time in history. Previously, only those traveling to Saudi Arabia for work or Muslim pilgrims were permitted to enter the country. Today, citizens of 57 nations, including the United States, can obtain an eVisa to travel to Saudi Arabia — and the application process is simple, fast, and relatively cheap.

Located in the heart of the Arabian Peninsula, Riyadh, the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia, stands as a testament to the region’s rich tapestry of culture, history, and modernity.

The Iranian government announced on Thursday it’s removing visa requirements for visitors from 33 countries, including Saudi Arabia — with which Iran has strained relationship over recent years.