Welcome EDITORIAL:
Group Editor Faye Rowe Editor Olivia Cuthbert
Contributors Criselda Diala, Gary Wright, Production Editor Debra Freeman-Thorpe
STUDIO:
Senior Art Director Andrea Tempesta SeniorDesigners Prachi Bhaumik, Tim MacDonald
Photographer Adham Sneeh
Production Coordinator Naveed Aziz ADVERTISING:
Advertisement Manager Irene Fernandez
International Sales Manager Rose D’Souza Sales Coordinators Christine Hamada, Carol Milan
PUBLISHING:
Publisher Rob Nicholas Cover image:
The Ritz-Carlton, Riyadh Photography:
Special thanks to the winners of the ‘Colours of Saudi’ photography competition, including
Ahmad Alfroan, Ahmad Suliman, Nader Alblwi, Mohammed Al Ali, Ali Al Abdullatif, Qasem AlJuhani, Husain Alahdal, Yousef Almasoud
By 2020, Saudi Arabian Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) aims to attract 88 million visitors. This figure may seem ambitious, but as the number of tourist arrivals to the kingdom grows year after year and large-scale developments in tourism infrastructure across the country near completion, it looks ever more likely that the target will be met. The country’s vibrant economy and stable political climate have contributed
significantly to the upward trend in visitor arrivals with SCTA predicting a total count of 14.87 million tourists for 2012. Further growth in the industry is anticipated this year with arrivals to increase by seven percent to 17.3 million in 2013, according to international industry consultant, Business Monitor International (BMI). For a long time, religious tourism has been the cornerstone of the kingdom’s travel
and tourism sector, but in recent years, business tourism has begun to play an increas- ingly prominent role. The Travel & Tourism Economic Impact 2012 report from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) placed its estimate of the average growth of business travel expenditure in Saudi Arabia at 5.1 percent per annum to reach SAR51 billion (US$14 billion) by 2022. At present, Saudi Arabia offers more than 600 meeting venues, the majority of
which are based in its key business cities of Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. In the next five years, SCTA expects the kingdom’s venue capacity to increase by 50 percent, following the planned construction of a new convention centre in Jeddah and a sharp increase in hotel supply across the country. These facilities will be complemented by a massive boost in tourist infrastructure in addition to the arrival of prestigious new attractions, the most high-profile being The Kingdom Tower in Jeddah. Set to overtake Dubai’s Burj Khalifa as the world’s tallest building at an enormous one kilometre high, the iconic structure will be only the first part of an ambitious project located along the Red Sea coast north of Jeddah. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Saudi Arabia’s plans to diversify
its economy away from a reliance on petro-chemicals and establish a thriving tourism sector. Huge funds are being channelled into the industry across all segments and each month brings the arrival of new venues and incentive options in business hubs across the kingdom, which are explored in detail in this issue of
saudiarabia.
Nicholas Publishing International FZ LLC PO Box 500573, Office 704, Executive Heights (Damac Building), Dubai, UAE Tel +971 4 4243600 Fax +971 4 4327505 Email
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Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information contained in this publication, NPI cannot be held responsible for any errors or inaccuracies contained within it. All information contained in this publication is under copyright to NPI and cannot be reproduced or transmitted in any form, without first obtaining written permission from the publisher.
Faye Rowe Group Editor | NPI Media
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