Saudi Arabia’s tourism sector continued its remarkable growth in 2025 after officially surpassing the targets set under Saudi Vision 2030 five years ahead of schedule, highlighting the Kingdom’s rapid transformation into a leading global tourism destination.
Official figures revealed that the total number of domestic and international tourists increased from around 63 million in 2016 to 123 million visitors by the end of 2025, reflecting the growing appeal of Saudi destinations and the rapid expansion of tourism, entertainment, and cultural experiences across the Kingdom.
The sector has also become a major driver of employment, with more than 1.2 million people now working in tourism-related activities. At the same time, Saudi women’s participation in the sector rose to approximately 47% of the total Saudi workforce in tourism, underscoring the Kingdom’s ongoing economic and social transformation.
This rapid growth helped drive tourism spending to a record SAR 304 billion during 2025, fueled by rising visitor numbers and increasing demand for Saudi tourism experiences, significantly boosting the sector’s contribution to GDP and economic diversification.
Globally, Saudi Arabia ranked as the world’s fastest-growing country in international tourism revenues during the first quarter of 2025, reinforcing its expanding presence on the global tourism map.
The progress has been supported by massive tourism investments, giga-projects, infrastructure expansion, airports, hotels, entertainment destinations, and the development of tourism experiences that combine religious, leisure, natural, and cultural tourism.
These achievements demonstrate that tourism has evolved beyond a supporting industry to become one of the Kingdom’s key economic growth engines as Saudi Arabia continues strengthening its position as a world-class destination for tourism, investment, and entertainment.
