The Ministry of Tourism of Saudi Arabia has reported that the number of licenses for tourism hospitality establishments increased from 2,000 in the third quarter (Q3) of last year to 3,950 by the end of Q3 2024, or a 99% year on year increase.
In turn, this has led to an even more substantial increase in the number of hospitality rooms available in the country, growing by 107% year on year, from around 214,000 to over 443,000 by the end of 2024’s third quarter.
The sustained growth of the Saudi tourism industry is also shown in visitor spending, which increased by 8.2% in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. Reaching around SAR 92.6 billion (€23.2 billion), the country has also recorded a surplus in the travel account of around SAR 41.6 billion (€10.4 billion).
Moreover, UN Tourism ranked Saudi Arabia 12th in the world for international tourist arrivals in 2023. And, according to the UN Tourism Barometer, the country achieved a 73% increase in international tourist arrivals and a 207% rise in international tourism receipts in the first seven months of 2024 compared to the same period in 2019. Globally, international tourist arrivals reached 96% of pre-pandemic levels in the first seven months of 2024 and an 11% increase over the same period in 2023.
Last year, over 100 million tourists visited Saudi Arabia, a goal the country had set itself for 2030, as part of the Saudi Vision 2030, an ambitious development program started by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in an attempt to diversify the country’s economy from fossil fuel. Reaching the target seven years early, the Kingdom has already adjusted its ambition and will now aim for 150 million annual visitors by 2030.
Several mega projects are being built across the country to attract tourists, including Neom, hailed as the “city of the future” when it was first announced in 2022. Despite recent doubts over the completion of Neom and of the Line, a 170-km-long belt of skyscrapers in the middle of the dessert, in particular, Saudi Arabia has promised all the projects will go ahead as planned and, in fact, the futuristic city has recently welcomed the first guests of a luxury resort on the Red Sea.
A new national airline, Riyadh Air, was also launched in March 2023, with the ambition of tripling Saudi Arabia’s air traffic to 330 million passengers by 2030 and turning the country into a regional travel hub. Moreover, tourism campaigns featuring football stars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been developed to increase the international appeal of the destination. The country has been recently rumoured to even consider a partial lift of the ban on alcohol soon.
