Reporting directly to SCTA president and board chairman HRH Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, AL Bhukkayet is instrumental in ensuring the country achieves its ambitious goals.

As he told Arabian Travel News earlier this year, the focus right now in Saudi is driving domestic tourism and developing the offering so that rather than “exporting tourists with a lot of money” Saudi nationals are encouraged to holiday within their own country.

Hotel investment is key to this ambition, and the next 10-years will see 85,000 hotel rooms and 80,000 rooms in the furnished apartment sector added to the market.International brands such as Rezidor, Wyndham, InterContinental, Accor Hospitality and Rotana are all expanding their presence in KSA. Significant investment is also being ploughed into tourism infrastructure, with major airport expansions and a high-speed rail link between Makkah and Madinah.

Another area of focus for Al Bhukkayet is of course religious tourism. Ambitious plans are underway to develop the Holy Cities of Makkah and Madinah so as to increase the capacity for pilgrims to perform Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages. The SCTA has also launched the innovative ‘Umrah-plus’ strategy, aimed at encouraging pilgrimage travellers to extend their stay and spend some time holidaying in the Kingdom.