Ashraf AboArafe
The Ministry of Tourism announced, in conjunction with World Tourism Day, that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) received 17.5 million tourists from abroad during the period from January to the end of July of the current year 2024, an increase of 10% compared to the same period last year 2023, and an increase of 73% compared to the same period in 2019.
The Ministry explained that the number of tourists arriving from abroad for leisure and vacation purposes during the first seven months of the current year amounted to 4.2 million tourists from abroad, with a growth rate of 25% compared to the same period last year 2023, and a growth rate of 656% compared to the same period in 2019.
The leaps witnessed by the tourism sector in the Kingdom demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the strategies and plans approved by the Kingdom to build a sustainable tourism sector in accordance with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, as the Kingdom achieved the target of reaching 100 million tourists during the past year 2023 AD, seven years ahead of the scheduled date.
The Kingdom succeeded in strengthening its position as a global tourism destination, as it topped the United Nations list in the growth rate of the number of international tourists during the past year 2023 AD, topping the list of G20 countries in the indicators of the growth rate of the number of international tourists and the growth rate of international tourism revenues, according to the latest report issued by the United Nations for tourism “World Tourism Barometer Report for September 2024 AD”.
