From Oil Giant to Travel Hub: Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 Test

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00:00Many countries seek to transform their economies, but few do it with such a centralized approach

00:05and such vast amounts of capital.

00:08Through its Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia wants to shed its image as just an oil nation and

00:13modernize its economy.

00:15It's a goal that comes from the very top, with the crown prince meeting President Trump

00:19and foreign business leaders in the United States at the end of 2025.

00:24More than 40% of Saudi Arabia's GDP comes from oil, but by 2030, the kingdom wants that

00:29number to be closer to 35%, with around two-thirds of GDP coming from non-oil sources.

00:35Just this month, the country started opening its property market to foreign investors and

00:40announced plans to do the same with its equity markets after a year of poor returns.

00:45In 2025, Saudi Arabia's benchmark index dropped 13%, despite strong stock performance in much

00:51of the rest of the world.

00:53Stephen Cook is a senior fellow for Middle East and Africa Studies at the Council on Foreign

00:57Relations.

00:57Saudi economy has been a commercial economy, but it hasn't really had genuine institutions

01:02of a market economy.

01:03Independent courts, which he hasn't even tackled yet, but rational investment laws and the

01:09things that investors really, really need in order to operate outside of the hydrocarbon

01:15industry.

01:16You know, with the Vision 2030, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said, we have to diversify

01:24the economy.

01:25We don't want to continue relying on one source of income, which is the oil.

01:30In a time where we have vast number of other things like mining, natural resources, phosphate,

01:39gold, and nature, we can do a lot in the sport, culture, and entertainment, and tourism.

01:47His Excellency Ahmed Al-Khatib has been serving as Saudi Arabia's Minister of Tourism since

01:522020.

01:53Tourism was one of the main pillars of Vision 2030.

01:59And since then, we have been working to modernize the country, build new destinations, new airlines,

02:06Riyadh Airlines, new airports, including King Salman Airport, and new hotels.

02:12Leisure tourism might be relatively new to Saudi Arabia, but for centuries, millions of Muslims

02:18have come to Mecca and Medina for the Hajj religious pilgrimage.

02:21We are blessed to have the two holy cities.

02:24They use to represent 60 percent of our international arrivals back in 2019.

02:31And last year, they dropped to 46 percent and the ledger increased.

02:38And therefore, we will continue pushing and promoting travel for ledger to Saudi Arabia,

02:46travel to enjoy your holidays in Saudi Arabia.

02:50And in the same time, the religious tourism will grow to a much bigger number than what

02:55we are having today.

02:57But now, Saudi Arabia wants to put a new foot forward.

03:01It might look like the Maldives, but that's the Shibara Resort Saudi Arabia on the Red Sea.

03:06Well, we were born out of Vision 2030.

03:10Vision 2030 is trying to accomplish a number of different things for the country, amongst

03:14which, obviously, creating a vibrant society, opening up the kingdom and diversifying the

03:19economy.

03:20John Pagano is CEO of Red Sea Global, a real estate development company founded by the

03:26Crown Prince himself to create the real estate that will become part of Saudi Arabia's tourism

03:30offerings.

03:30We have a beautiful, pristine environment, which in the world today doesn't exist.

03:36I mean, we've exploited our nature and our environments globally.

03:40When I first came to Saudi Arabia, I was shocked at how beautiful and pristine this environment

03:45was.

03:45We had beautiful islands, a coastline that was largely untouched.

03:50Pagano's shock is exactly the image that the kingdom wants to change.

03:54Stephen Cook said there's a long road ahead.

03:56I was there before the opening up of Saudi Arabia, and it was extraordinary because nobody

04:00had been there.

04:01But in terms of tourism, I think that, yes, there'll be tourism from, you know, major Muslim

04:07countries, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, which has the second largest Muslim population in

04:12the world, even though it's not a Muslim country.

04:14But also, I think there is a genuine interest in attracting people from the West, Americans and

04:19Europeans, and not just the kind of, you know, adventure tourism that they may have seen

04:24so far.

04:25Beach resorts attract wealthy tourists, but the kingdom is also leaning into its rich

04:29history to combine luxury and culture for what it hopes will be a unique experience.

04:35Al-Ola is an incredible place, a place like no other.

04:38It's a region in northwest Saudi Arabia with incredible natural and cultural significance.

04:44It's located on the ancient incense route, and many civilization has passed through for

04:52thousands of years.

04:53Abir Al-Akl is the CEO of the Royal Commission for Al-Ola, which means glory in Arabic.

04:59The city is one of eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Saudi Arabia, and the kingdom has big

05:05plans to make the destination a central part of its tourism initiative.

05:09Al-Ola is not just a historical site.

05:13Al-Ola is a home.

05:15Many families have lived there for generations.

05:17And I would say that an example would be Al-Ola Old Town, where it was inhibited by the families

05:25starting from the 12th century until late 1980s.

05:30Now, if you bring all of this together, the ancient past, the incredible nature, protected nature, and the living

05:40culture and, you know, living community, this basically gets you a complete picture of Al-Ola.

05:47It's important to say that Al-Ola is Saudi Arabia's treasure, but it's also the gift for the world.

05:52Which year did Al-Ola open for international tourists?

05:57We started our efforts back in 2019.

06:01Today, we have received around 300,000 guests, visitors to Al-Ola, 30 percent of which are international

06:08visitation. So we're targeting around 2 million visitors by 2035.

06:12If Al-Ola's plan to bring in 2 million visitors by 2035 sounds ambitious when it attracted only 15 percent of that

06:20last year, that's because it is. It echoes the kingdom's big target of getting 50 million foreign

06:26visitors a year by the end of the decade, in addition to 100 million local tourists. It's a goal that is

06:32even more stunning, considering the kingdom only opened its borders to leisure tourists in 2019.

06:38Do you feel like you're on track to get there?

06:40I'm very comfortable. The 50 million will put Saudi Arabia among the top 10 most visited

06:47countries around the world.

06:48And how much of a draw are those big mega events, the World Expo, potentially FIFA World Cup?

06:55How much of a draw is that going to be in terms of bringing in those international tourists?

06:59And where does it fit in to your broader plan?

07:02It is very important for us to repeat the visitors who will come again and again to

07:08spend their holidays in Saudi Arabia, not to come only for business or to visit their families and friends.

07:16Adding leisure tourism to its offerings requires a big capital outlay. The government plans to spend

07:22almost $1 trillion in all to transform its tourism industry. Private investment in tourism rose to $3.8

07:29billion in 2024. And about 40% of that comes from foreign capital.

07:34How important is it to get private sector

07:36involvement with all of these events and projects that you're putting together?

07:39It's very important. It is part of Vision 2030. We want the private sector to drive. We are a regulator.

07:48When we opened this sector, the government started to stimulate the sector. But down the road,

07:55this sector has to be run by the private sector. The private sector in the tourism built the hotel,

08:02built the shopping mall, and built the restaurants, etc. And they operated. They are the investor.

08:08They are the operator. But they have to. The private sector in Saudi Arabia is contributing

08:14heavily in building new destinations and new experiences. We cannot do it alone. The private

08:21sector role is very vital to the success of this sector. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia also has stiff

08:27competition from its neighbor, the United Arab Emirates, and beach destinations in Africa and Asia.

08:32This is a dynamic throughout the region. There is competition among all of these countries

08:38and cities, actually. And even within them, you know, there's a competition between Abu Dhabi and Dubai,

08:43even though they're both in the UAE. And I think that the Saudis always looked themselves as the big dog

08:50in the region, but they'd lag behind in terms of the kind of ability to attract businesses and firms

08:58and build these gleaming, gleaming cities. International visitors account for almost 80 percent of the UAE's

09:05tourism expenditure. And right now, Dubai offers tourists something that much of the rest of Saudi Arabia

09:11doesn't, alcohol. But even that is changing. Well, you can get alcohol in the diplomatic quarter.

09:18You could always get it through diplomatic pouch, but now there's actually a shop. And so Saudis

09:22proclaim, not officially, but they would say, you know, this is a precursor. This is the first step

09:30towards legalizing alcohol in the kingdom. I don't think anybody knows when that's going to happen.

09:35And from, I think, the Saudi perspective, that's not make or break. People will want to come to Saudi

09:40Arabia. They'll want to see Jidda and Riyadh and Al-Ula and other places. And it won't deter them if they

09:48can't get a glass of wine. But it certainly would be a nice addition if they could. A growing tourism

09:54industry is also changing things at home. Look, I think the transformation has been

10:00breathtaking. I first came to Saudi Arabia for the very first time in 2017. And, you know, the changes

10:08in society, the changes, I mean, simple things like cinemas and music, women driving. And, you know,

10:15you're walking around today in a Western business suit, which back then you probably didn't see.

10:20The local community are basically the heart of our vision. Since the beginning, we ensured that

10:27we have set in place an approach that ensures empowering our local community through education,

10:34sewage shop, and opportunities. Is Saudi infrastructure ready to accommodate

10:42this potential influx of future tourists? Oh, yes. We are ready today. We have catered for 116

10:49without any issue. But definitely we are building new destinations, new experiences. I believe

10:57we are ready to cater for with the projects in the pipeline under construction, whether Riyadh Airlines

11:08or King Salman Airport that will happen, and many other airports like Abha Airport, Asir Airport,

11:17which is important, and the hotel rooms that are under construction, and Riyadh, and many other

11:26destinations or locations. We will be absolutely fine. I don't think we will have a challenge to achieve

11:34the 150 billion.

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