Saudi tourism tips

The chief operating officer of Saudi Arabia’s new airline, Riyadh Air, doesn’t expect the carrier will become a “super-connecter” but will focus instead on “point-to-point” travel. And COO Peter Bellew told at the Dubai Airshow Tuesday that Ryadh Air will meet different needs than nearby Emirates.

Saudi Arabia has laid out its ambition to build a hotel of such magnitude, allure and luxury, that travelers from the world over will come to see it. In Dubai, the emirate has the two Atlantis resorts, between them almost 2,000 rooms. In the US, historic hotels such as The Plaza sit in New York and mega-resorts fill the Las Vegas strip. But in Saudi a set of three boutique hotels will be the “global bucket list” destination of choice.

Saudi billionaire and royal family member Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud has snapped up a 50% stake in the upcoming Four Seasons resort in the ultra-luxurious Red Sea project in Saudi Arabia for $266 million, according to a release from Red Sea Global.

Saudi Arabia announced Thuwal Private Retreat, an ultra-luxurious and likely ultra-secretive private island along its Red Sea coast. Promised as a place of “indulgence” the island opens next year, available for total buy-outs only.

The Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia has formed another development company, Ardara, solely focused on the upcoming AlWadi destination. Launched by Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, who serves as PIF’s chairman, Ardara adds to the crown prince’s portfolio of government-owned construction companies.

Saudi Arabia’s futuristic NEOM super-city has announced another region. It is called Leyja, pitched as the $500 billion development’s sustainable and eco-tourism hub in the mountains. Leyja has no opening date or firm details on facilities, what we do know, so far, is that it will include three hotels.

Saudi Arabia wants to write and uphold official “7-star standards” at its upcoming ultra-luxury Sindalah Island. The idea of ‘7-star’ anything dates back to the opening of Dubai’s Burj Al Arab hotel, a distinction that operator Jumeirah has never liked using, nor has the emirate officiated.

It was two nights before Qatar’s World Cup, and all across its stadiums, staffers were frantically removing beer stands – the country had reversed its decision to serve alcohol in stadiums.

For a long time, perhaps the only comparison one could draw between Monaco and Gulf capital Saudi Arabia was a lack of personal income tax. Now, Saudi is looking to become a bit more like Monaco when it comes to its lavish yachting industry.

Saudi Arabia will put in its bid to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup. To win it, the kingdom must meet new hosting requirements, including a stellar track record in human rights and a commitment to sustainability.

Saudi Arabia has become a “must-see destination”, Zurab Pololikashvili, secretary-general of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, said in Riyadh during the opening ceremony of World Tourism Day this weekend. “This is a country that always looks forward, and in big ways,” he continued. “Saudi Arabia is now the second-biggest place for foreign direct investment projects in all the Middle East and Africa. I’m proud to say we count on the support of Saudi Arabia.”

Saudi Tourism Authority and Ant Group have signed a MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) to explore introducing Alipay+, a suite of unified global mobile payment and marketing solutions, to Saudi Arabia, aiming to provide a seamless mobile payment experience for Asian tourists in Saudi and beyond and to further expand Alipay+’s global coverage.

During a historic visit to Saudi Arabia earlier this week, Israel’s Minister of Tourism said that it is the travel industry that can thaw the frosty relations between the two countries. Haim Katz’s visit marked the most senior member of the Israeli government to visit the Gulf kingdom.

Saudi Arabia’s tourism and hospitality sector is in high gear to achieve industry targets set under Vision 2030, industry leaders said during a panel at FHS on Tuesday. “No sector matches tourism in creating jobs, especially in rural areas and communities that are currently suffering from unemployment. One in every five jobs globally today is supported by tourism, so that’s tourism is such an important sector,” Badr Alherbish, chief strategy officer of Saudi Arabia’s Tourism Development Fund, said in one of the sessions of the three-day Future Hospitality Summit in Abu Dhabi.

LeBron James is in Saudi Arabia. First came the shaky videos on Twitter, then a government-approved video at The Saudi Basketball Federation, and now, he has been photographed admiring one of the kingdom’s many tourism projects: Diriyah Gate.

Saudi Arabia’s tourism revenue touched US$10bn at the beginning of 2023, as the country continues to grow its travel and tourism sector.

Saudi Tourism Authority officially launched its seasonal campaign, Rethink Summer, aimed at promoting the country as a diverse, unique summer destination. Calling Saudi the fastest growing destination worldwide, Ahmed Al Khateeb, minister of tourism and chairman of the Saudi Tourism Authority said the campaign builds on the fact that Saudi has proved to be a yearlong destination for visitors. “Our partners in the private sector are instrumental in this campaign, offering over 1.8 million additional seats for inbound flights, more than 15,000 new hotel rooms, and over 100 products tailored to meet the taste of all our visitors this summer. This is the largest contribution of the private sector yet,” Al Khateeb said. The destination is set to hit significant milestones this year, from the opening of the first three resorts at The Red Sea, an ambitious, regenerative, luxury tourism development, to Neom’s Sindalah Island. Diriyah, the 300-year-old mud city and birthplace of Saudi also recently celebrated the welcoming of one million visitors since its opening in November.

Posted five weeks ago, this Instagram post from renowned footballer Lionel Messi on Saudi Arabia, marked as a paid partnership with Visit Saudi, has garnered around 17 million likes and more than 78,000 comments.