Remember that gloomy prediction that remote work would kill corporate travel forever? Well, in the Middle East and North Africa, that narrative hasn’t just been disproven; it has been absolutely crushed. In 2025, business travel spending across the region surged nearly 20%.
This growth leaves many of the older, “mature” Western markets in the rearview mirror. We aren’t just going back to the old ways, though. We are witnessing the birth of a more strategic, intentional travel economy.
It’s a new era, not of half-hearted corporate smiles and cold handshakes, but intentional, purposeful travel, where the stakes are high and a human representative on the ground makes a meaningful difference, maximises collaboration, and improves the scope of industrial projects.
The Giga-project Boardroom
The real engine behind this roar is the MICE sector, which stands for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions. The region has basically declared itself the world’s global boardroom.
Cities like Dubai or Riyadh have some state-of-the-art infrastructure and a geographic centrality that makes them the epicentre of global trade deals. The data is clear on this, and there is a massive spike in large-scale industry events, particularly in construction, energy, and tech.
It makes perfect sense, doesn’t it? You simply cannot build a USD 500 billion city like NEOM or expand a massive global logistics hub over a glitchy Zoom call. These capital-intensive beasts require your physical presence, site inspections that get your boots dusty, and those complex, face-to-face negotiations that happen best over a real coffee.
Then there is “bleisure.” It is a bit of a clunky word, isn’t it? But it has moved from being a corporate buzzword to a survival strategy for keeping top talent happy. In today’s cutthroat market, companies use travel as a high-value perk. Imagine an executive retreat at a plush resort in Qatar or a high-level strategy session tucked away in the ancient beauty of AlUla.
Because of this, we are seeing the average spend per trip climb. Companies take fewer flights now, but they open the chequebook wider for the ones they do take to ensure they are both productive and, frankly, memorable. This shift from volume to value is forcing the hospitality industry to level up, creating a massive demand for premium venues and “all-in-one” experience packages.
Smart Hubs And Digital DNA
Now, this growth isn’t just happening randomly. It is clustering in specific power hubs that have poured billions into connectivity. While Dubai still wears the crown as the trade show capital, Riyadh is sprinting to catch up, becoming the go-to spot for heavy industry summits and investment galas. We are also seeing the borders feel a lot “softer” for business. Executives now treat the Riyadh-Dubai-Doha triangle as one giant regional market, hopping between cities with the same casualness you’d use for a domestic commute.
Technology is the secret sauce here. Local travel management stars like Musafir.com report that AI-powered platforms are now the baseline. These tools help us plan smarter, ensuring travel budgets actually deliver a return on investment.
They track our carbon footprints, manage nightmare itineraries, and keep us safe in real time. This digital maturity is exactly why global corporations, which demand strict compliance and efficiency, are flocking here.
The sheer scale of these projects ensures this isn’t just a temporary bubble. The construction and real estate explosions in Saudi Arabia alone act like a magnet, pulling in a constant stream of inbound traffic. We are talking about an army of consultants, engineers, architects, and investors flooding into the Kingdom.
This demand isn’t a flash in the pan; it is tethered to long-term government spending that stretches out for decades. The MICE sector effectively serves as the physical operating system for these giga-projects, providing the actual rooms where the messy work of human coordination happens.
Looking To 2030
Looking toward the end of the decade, the path for MENA business travel looks incredibly solid. Experts project the market will blow past a USD 270 billion valuation by 2030. This isn’t just about big numbers; it reflects a region that has successfully diversified its soul and plugged itself into the veins of global trade.
The rise of the “purposeful traveller” shows us that the industry has finally grown up. It is no longer just about hawking airline seats or hotel vouchers. We are now in the business of facilitating the complex human sparks that actually drive the global economy. As long as the region keeps building the most ambitious projects on the planet, the rest of the world will keep booking flights to help build them.