meet saudiarabia INTRODUCTION
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in the kingdom are managed and supervised by their UAE-based offices and are frequently visited for follow-ups,” explains the Euromonitor report. Around 35 percent of arrivals to Saudi
in 2012 visited Al Makkah Al Mukarramah, with the luxury developments located close to the shrine, from Fairmont and Raffles hotels to a Louis Vuitton store, incentivising high spending on accommodation and leisure activities while performing worship duties, according to Euromonitor. Leisure and religious tourism arrivals
IN NUMBERS
• Tourism arrivals increased 10 percent to 16.5 million trips in 2012
• Business trips accounted for 23 percent of all arrivals in 2012 amounting to 3.7 million trips
• Business trips are expected to reach 7.1 million by 2017
• Kuwait was the biggest tourism source market in 2012 with three million trips
• Te biggest growth market for tourism in 2012 was the UAE with a 16 percent year-on-year increase in arrivals
• Total tourism arrivals are set to increase by a volume CAGR of 13 percent to 30.5 million by 2017
Source: Euromonitor International
accounted for 77 percent of all visitors to KSA in 2012, but the remainder visited the kingdom for business purposes, equating to 3.7 million trips for the year. Euromonitor claims Saudi Arabia’s
growing economy, coupled with the government’s initiatives to attract foreign investment, continue to generate more business trips to the country, with the total number expected to almost double to hit the 7.1 million-trip mark in 2017, a constant volume Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 13 percent.
Total inbound tourist arrivals are
predicted to increase by a volume CAGR of 13 percent to 30.5 million by 2017 as continued development of the business, industrial, infrastructure, tourist and entertainment sectors gathers pace, backed by the government and private sector.
MEETINGS ON THE AGENDA With business tourism arrivals on the up, coupled with an investment boom, the lucrative meetings and incentives sector has not gone unnoticed by the SCTA. Abdullah Al Jehani, current adviser to
the Chairman of SECB and former Vice President, SCTA, has hailed Saudi Arabia as one of the “major MICE locations in the Middle East”, noting its potential as one of the highest yielding niche markets for the kingdom after religious tourism. Exhibitions and conferences also overcome seasonality issues, swelling arrivals numbers off-peak, the SCTA acknowledges. The SCTA first launched a strategy
for the development of the meetings industry in 2005, key elements of which included developing the regulatory framework to foster the growth of the sector. Visa and licensing issues were
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