The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is experiencing an unprecedented surge in international visitors, witnessing a remarkable 142% increase in the first half of 2023, surpassing 14 million individuals.
Data released by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Tourism this week provided preliminary statistics for the first half of 2023. Within the total tourist count of 53.6 million for the year, 39 million were domestic tourists, and the remaining 14.6 million were international tourists.
Notably, tourism spending is also seeing an upward trend
According to the ministry, “The total tourism spending reached (SAR 150B), of which (SAR 63.1bn) came from domestic tourism and (SAR 86.9B) from inbound tourism, indicating a new historical record for Saudi tourism.”
The statement highlighted a (16%) growth in tourism spending for domestic tourism in the first half of 2023. Gulf Business attributes the increase to the rise in the average length of stay from (4.6) nights in the first half of 2022 to (6.3) nights in the first half of 2023.
Officials further emphasized that leisure emerged as the primary reason for tourist visits, experiencing an (18%) increase compared to the first half of 2022. A significant portion of domestic tourist trips, with (16.6 million) tourists, constituted (43%) of the total.
