Vision 2030 has taken years in the planning and represents one of the most fascinating and expensive economic transformation projects in the world. The plan to turn an oil-dependent economy into a major service and tourism-based economy is visionary, exciting, and hugely expensive, capturing the attention of airline and airport CEOs throughout the region.
By 2030 the Vision 2030 plan calls for tourism to account for over 10% of GDP; generating at least one million additional jobs as GIGA projects (such as NEOM, Amala, and the Red Sea Project) attract tourists from around the world seeking a combination of cultural and beach holidays. An additional 150,000 hotel rooms will become available in the next few years, including seven-star luxury accommodation investments in locations such as Al Ula and the Red Sea Resorts. Hopes are for over half a million hotel rooms to be available per night by 2030.
Facilitating such growth is challenging; significant infrastructure investment, skills training, easing of visa requirements, and some very expensive branding and destination awareness campaigns targeted at high-worth travelers worldwide are only part of it. But perhaps the largest part of the story is around the ambition for increased visitors to the Kingdom, and with that ambition both the direct impact on the local aviation market and the subsequent “ripple” effect in other markets across the Middle East.
