Saudi Arabia aims to double the number of tourists by the year 2030

Saudi Arabia attracted 27 million foreign tourists in 2023 and aims to double this number by the end of the current decade, according to the Kingdom's Minister of Tourism, Ahmed Al Khateeb, who made the announcement on Tuesday.

This declaration comes less than five years after the Gulf kingdom fully opened up to tourism, amid ongoing concerns about the widening scope of the conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

During a conference organized by the Saudi Sovereign Wealth Fund, Al Khateeb stated, "We reached 100 million tourists, 77 from domestic and 27 from abroad. Over 100 million."

 He further added that authorities now hope to reach 150 million tourists by 2030, a more ambitious goal compared to the previous target of 100 million, with 70 million coming from abroad compared to the previous goal of 30 million.

Tourism is a significant element of the "Vision 2030" reform agenda, through which Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman seeks to diversify his country's sources of income. Saudi Arabia, the world's largest exporter of crude oil, aims to transform itself into a hub for business, entertainment, and tourism.

The kingdom annually hosts millions of Muslim pilgrims and business travelers, but it only introduced a general tourist visa in 2019, just months before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which severely impacted the tourism sector worldwide.

While Saudi Arabia has relaxed rules in recent years regarding cinemas, mixed-gender music concerts, and sporting events, other laws, including the ban on alcohol, remain in place, which may affect its tourist appeal.

New resorts along the Red Sea coast are expected to be a major attraction despite security concerns raised by recent attacks by Yemeni rebels in the Red and Arabian Seas.

The Houthi rebels, who have been at war with a Saudi-led military coalition since 2015, claim that their attacks target ships linked to Israel or heading to its ports, in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where a war has been raging since October 7 of last year.

AFP