Saudi Arabia unveils $113 billion tourism investment strategy to dramatically diversify economy
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia/London-UK, November 26, 2025
VISION 2030 SHIFT: Tourism Development Fund (TDF) Anchors $113 Billion Global Portfolio, Announcing SAR 7 Billion in New Deals to Attract 150 Million Visitors by 2030
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is aggressively accelerating its ambitious economic transformation, with the tourism sector becoming the definitive engine of the Vision 2030 diversification plan.
The country has successfully attracted an estimated $113 Billion Tourism Investment Strategy to Dramatically Diversify Economy, a massive global portfolio that underscores the scale of the commitment to move beyond reliance on oil revenues.
The momentum was solidified at the recent TOURISE 2025 Summit in Riyadh, where the Tourism Development Fund (TDF) unveiled over SAR 7 billion (approximately $1.87 billion) in new foreign investments and strategic partnerships, demonstrating a relentless pace of development few nations can match.
This financial commitment is backed by startling success. Saudi Arabia has already surpassed its initial Vision 2030 target of attracting 100 million visitors annually seven years ahead of schedule.
Buoyed by this achievement, the country has raised the bar, setting an ambitious new goal of 150 million annual visits by 2030, with international tourists expected to account for 50 million of that total.
Economically, the objective is to double the sector’s current contribution to the economy, aiming for tourism to provide 10 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and create a total of 1.6 million jobs across the Kingdom by the end of the decade.
This push is positioning Saudi Arabia as one of the world’s top five most visited countries.
A Strategy of Diversification and Luxury
The nature of the investment highlights a key strategic goal: moving away from a sector historically dominated by religious tourism towards a world-class leisure, nature, and cultural offering.
The Tourism Development Fund (TDF) is channeling capital into diverse regions and product types, aiming to showcase the Kingdom’s geographical and cultural richness.
Key announcements from the November TOURISE summit illuminate this strategy:
Eastern Province Integrated Destination:
A SAR 7 billion project was announced for Al Khobar to transform the pier into an integrated tourism and lifestyle destination, featuring world-class hotels and branded residences, aiming to boost regional appeal.
Ecotourism and Nature:
Significant investments, including SAR 2.9 billion in integrated projects, are focused on developing the mountainous Aseer and Al-Baha regions into global ecotourism hubs, with a focus on nature-based hospitality and connecting destinations through curated trails.
Luxury and Novelty:
The TDF signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Arsenale of Italy to launch the “Dream of the Desert” luxury train, the company’s first international venture.
This 1,300 km route is designed to offer a luxury hotel experience that links multiple tourist destinations and unlocks the Kingdom’s vast desert and heritage landscapes.
Furthermore, MoUs were signed with international hospitality groups like Melia Hotels and Aina Hospitality to introduce new, high-end brands like ZEL and Relais & Châteaux.
The development of these regional projects complements the massive, ongoing giga-projects like NEOM, the Red Sea Project, and Qiddiya, forming a comprehensive national strategy that blends futuristic hyper-developments with the preservation of cultural heritage, such as projects supporting Historic Jeddah.
Geopolitical and Social Implications
The aggressive, state-backed nature of this transformation—often led by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and the Tourism Development Fund—is intrinsically linked to geopolitical strategy.
By creating a powerful, non-oil economic pillar, Saudi Arabia aims to secure its financial future and soft power influence on the global stage, transforming its image from a closed, oil-centric economy to a global hub for business, tourism, and culture.
However, the rapid pace presents significant social challenges. The introduction of mass international tourism, particularly in conservative regions, requires fundamental social changes, rapid human capital development (to staff the 1.6 million required jobs), and careful cultural management to avoid internal friction.
The success of this massive investment program, coordinated out of Riyadh, hinges on a delicate balance: achieving global economic competitiveness while maintaining cultural authenticity and managing the impact of such sweeping societal reform.
For the London-UK based CJ Global, the $113 Billion Tourism Investment Strategy represents one of the most significant and rapidly unfolding economic diversification efforts in modern history, one that is reshaping the Middle East and setting a new benchmark for state-led economic transition.
