Saudi Arabia's $800B investment to build human connections

While many destinations are leaning into experiences, most don't also have to contend with the challenge of changing perceptions.

Step forward Saudi Arabia, which is investing billions in attracting tourists to experience all the destination has to offer.

During an interview at The Phocuswright Conference, Hazim Al-Hazmi, president of Americas & Europe markets for the Saudi Tourism Authority, discussed the importance of authentic experiences and Saudi's ambitious plans with Siew Hoon Yeoh, founder of WIT and editorial director, Northstar Travel Group Asia.

With an $800 billion investment target by 2030, the Saudi Kingdom aims to become one of the top five global destinations, attracting 150 million visitors annually.

“This number is just a reflection of the enormous and serious ambition and commitment that we have as a nation to establish Saudi as the next global destination for travel and tourism,” Al-Hazmi said.

Key projects include infrastructural developments, new airports and hotels and focusing on the Red Sea as a top sun and sea destination. “This year, we launched four resorts that were announced, two, three years ago. Next year, we have 16 more that will be operational and bookable,” he said. Al-Hazmi highlighted the importance of “authenticity and personalization” in creating unique travel experiences and the need to improve storytelling.

“In a time and age of hyper-personalization, people are looking to experience things and create stories and memories that haven’t been told before,” he said. 

With eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the kingdom, Al-Hazmi is confident Saudi Arabia has many unique stories to tell. He highlighted Al Ula, the site of a 7,000-year-old civilization and the northern part of Saudi Arabia, where it snows, as destinations that will surely surprise and delight visitors.

Al-Hazmi sees the role of technology as streamlining travel logistics but not replacing human interactions. “We should automate the expected and keep humanizing the unexpected,” he said. “The experiential aspect of travel still needs to be humanized, and it shouldn’t be touched by technology."

Saudi Arabia is building its brand through partnerships with influencers and enterprises. “Inviting more brands to tell the Saudi story, from their perspective, is something that we will be doing and keep doing,” he said.   

So far, Saudi’s tourism campaign is on track, garnering positive results: “We have achieved 950,000 visitors in 2022. In 2023, we received 2.4 million,” he said. “And this year, year to date, we are growing by around 26% versus the same period last year. We expect to close north to 3 million by the end of the year.”

Watch the full discussion below.