According to the most recent UN Tourism report, Saudi Arabia has made a spectacular leap, moving up 15 spots to 12th place in the world for 2023 visitor spending. Out of the top 50 nations, this is the biggest jump.
The ranking comes after a September UN Tourism report that showed the Kingdom’s dominance among G20 countries with a startling 207% increase in international tourism receipts from January to July 2024 compared to the same period in 2019 and a 73% increase in the growth of foreign visitors.
These successes highlight tourists’ increasing trust in the Kingdom’s varied and alluring offerings and solidify Saudi Arabia’s position as a top international travel destination.
The tourism industry has increased its 2030 target from 100 million to 150 million visitors to build on this momentum, with the possibility of additional increases if this goal is achieved early, according to Mahmoud Abdulhadi, deputy minister of destination enablement at the Ministry of Tourism.
Speaking recently at the Future Hospitality Summit in Riyadh, Abdulhadi said that goals are continuously evaluated and modified in response to sector performance.
In its efforts to become a world leader in the tourism sector, the UNWTO hailed the Kingdom’s tourism development as a “significant milestone.”
In 2023, tourism-related spending exceeded USD 37 billion, according to the report, and hotel capacity nationwide increased significantly. Saudi Arabia received roughly 17.5 million foreign visitors in the first seven months of 2024.
In the same year, there were 27.4 million visitors to the Kingdom, a 56% increase over 2019. Saudi Arabia is now the top tourist destination on the United Nation’s list of major destinations due to this surge.
The Kingdom’s tourism surplus also hit a record SR48 billion (USD 12.8 billion) in 2023, a 38% increase from the previous year.
Saudi Arabia’s tourism industry has made great strides under the Saudi Vision 2030 initiative, according to the International Monetary Fund’s 2024 Article IV Consultation report, which was published in September.
Particularly in the services sector, which has emerged as a major growth engine in terms of visitor numbers, spending, job creation, and GDP contribution, the IMF emphasised the sector’s critical role in diversifying the Kingdom’s economic base.