Saudi Arabia to Build Future Cities Designed with Tourists in Mind, Says Tourism Minister
Minister Ahmed Al-Khateeb highlights visitor-centric urban planning and sustainability as key pillars of the Kingdom’s tourism drive
Saudi Arabia’s tourism minister, Ahmed Al-Khateeb, said the Kingdom is refocusing its urban development strategy to build destinations that cater not only to residents but explicitly to international and regional visitors.
He told Arab News that “cities of the future must be designed for visitors as well” and emphasised that sustainability will serve as the guiding principle behind all new projects.
In explaining the shift, Al-Khateeb noted significant changes in travel behaviour, pointing out that “people used to travel in groups.
Today, they are travelling in smaller groups.
Hotels used to make most of their revenues from rooms — now, they are making more from lounges and restaurants.” He said the emerging cohorts of younger, tech-characterised travellers are shaping itineraries dynamically and placing pressure on legacy travel-industry models.
Highlighting key source markets, he pointed out that China has become “the most important source market for outbound travellers,” while India is expected to double its number of travellers in the coming years.
He added that this shift opens “a major opportunity for the Middle East — and Saudi Arabia in particular — to emerge as a top destination for international tourists.”
Al-Khateeb said that since 2019, Saudi Arabia has recorded the fastest tourism growth among all Group of Twenty nations.
“We have a very strong domestic market and a very strong religious market.
Now, we have opened our doors for leisure, business and holiday travellers — whether they seek the Red Sea coast, the southern mountains, our major cities or our beautiful islands.” He added that all future destination planning is enveloped within environmental, social and economic sustainability frameworks: “Whatever we build today is environmentally friendly… ensuring not only environmental, but also social and economic sustainability.”
The minister’s remarks align with the broader national agenda of Saudi Vision 2030, which targets tourism as a major engine of diversification and growth.
By designing integrated tourist destinations from the outset, Saudi Arabia aims to shift from simply accommodating visitors to orchestrating their experience at scale.
In this context, new developments such as luxury island resorts, mountain destinations and revitalised cultural towns form part of a strategy that equally targets global leisure travellers and local residents, blending tourism infrastructure with urban amenity.
With sustainability embedded at every level, the Kingdom’s tourism-led urban planning marks a significant step toward positioning Saudi Arabia as a global destination built for the visitor experience and beyond.
He told Arab News that “cities of the future must be designed for visitors as well” and emphasised that sustainability will serve as the guiding principle behind all new projects.
In explaining the shift, Al-Khateeb noted significant changes in travel behaviour, pointing out that “people used to travel in groups.
Today, they are travelling in smaller groups.
Hotels used to make most of their revenues from rooms — now, they are making more from lounges and restaurants.” He said the emerging cohorts of younger, tech-characterised travellers are shaping itineraries dynamically and placing pressure on legacy travel-industry models.
Highlighting key source markets, he pointed out that China has become “the most important source market for outbound travellers,” while India is expected to double its number of travellers in the coming years.
He added that this shift opens “a major opportunity for the Middle East — and Saudi Arabia in particular — to emerge as a top destination for international tourists.”
Al-Khateeb said that since 2019, Saudi Arabia has recorded the fastest tourism growth among all Group of Twenty nations.
“We have a very strong domestic market and a very strong religious market.
Now, we have opened our doors for leisure, business and holiday travellers — whether they seek the Red Sea coast, the southern mountains, our major cities or our beautiful islands.” He added that all future destination planning is enveloped within environmental, social and economic sustainability frameworks: “Whatever we build today is environmentally friendly… ensuring not only environmental, but also social and economic sustainability.”
The minister’s remarks align with the broader national agenda of Saudi Vision 2030, which targets tourism as a major engine of diversification and growth.
By designing integrated tourist destinations from the outset, Saudi Arabia aims to shift from simply accommodating visitors to orchestrating their experience at scale.
In this context, new developments such as luxury island resorts, mountain destinations and revitalised cultural towns form part of a strategy that equally targets global leisure travellers and local residents, blending tourism infrastructure with urban amenity.
With sustainability embedded at every level, the Kingdom’s tourism-led urban planning marks a significant step toward positioning Saudi Arabia as a global destination built for the visitor experience and beyond.
