RYADH - As part of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 plan, Saudi Arabia has announced transformational changes to the country’s tourism sector, including the decision to allow women to wear Bikinis on Private Beaches.
With a historic bid to welcome 100 million tourists by 2030, Saudi Arabia is eager to welcome travellers of all backgrounds. In his exclusive interview with Frank Kane, the host of Arab News Show “Frankly Speaking,” Saudi Minister of Tourism, His Excellency Ahmad bin Al Khateeb emphasized several key groundbreaking developments:
Women permitted to wear Bikinis and western swimwear on private beaches:
His Excellency Ahmad bin Al Khateeb announced that visitors would be allowed to wear Western-style swimsuits on all private beaches in the Kingdom.
200 Billion USD Investment Drive:
“We need to inject about $70 billion until 2023,” the Minister is quoted as saying, “and more than $200 billion by 2030 to fill the gap in the offering, whether in retail or in hospitality or in recreation.”
The minister stressed that Saudi Arabia is also open to foreign direct investment in this critical sector. “We have been sharing our story with the world,” he explained. “They came and looked at our amazing natural resources, our heritage and history and culture, and they definitely see that there is an amazing opportunity.”
Investment in tourism is a key milestone in the implementation of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, which seeks to diversify the country's economy and reduce its dependence on oil. By 2030, the aim is for tourism to contribute up to 10% of the country's GDP, compared to just 3% today.
In the first week of December the Kingdom launched its the domestic winter tourism campaign. By quarter one or quarter two of 2021 Saudi Arabia hopes to be able to start hosting and promoting tourism for international visitors once again.
Saudi Arabia’s hidden UNESCO and natural heritage sites:
As the Minister noted, forty percent of 2019’s 1.6 billion tourists travelled “for sun and sea—and we have among the best sun and sea destinations in the world. The Red Sea is still virgin, pristine, with protected corals and reefs and islands.”
A further thirty percent, he emphasized, travelled for “history and heritage”: “We have 10,000 discovered historical sites in Saudi Arabia, with five listed UNESCO sites. People are anxious to come and experience and learn about civilizations that lived in this region thousands of years ago.”
