Saudi Arabia’s tourism sector continued its rapid expansion in 2025, reaching record levels in visitor numbers, spending and economic contribution, according to the Ministry of Tourism’s Annual Statistical Report for 2025.

The report highlights the sector’s ongoing transformation under the National Tourism Strategy and Saudi Vision 2030, reinforcing tourism’s role as a key pillar of economic diversification.

Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb said the sector’s strong performance reflects the Kingdom’s strategic focus on tourism development, supported by national leadership and long-term investments.

He noted that the latest results demonstrate not only growth in visitor activity but also the emergence of tourism as a significant driver of economic and social progress.

According to the report, Saudi Arabia welcomed approximately 123 million inbound and domestic tourists in 2025, marking a 6% increase compared with 2024.

Total tourism spending reached a record SAR304 billion ($81 billion), up 7% year-on-year, highlighting rising demand across both international and domestic travel segments.

The sector’s contribution to the national economy also strengthened.

Tourism directly accounted for 4.9% of Saudi Arabia’s GDP in 2024, representing a 14% increase from the previous year.

The momentum continued into 2025, with the Kingdom recording a SAR49.4 billion surplus in the travel account of the balance of payments.

Tourism-related activities contributed more than 61% of total services exports, underscoring the sector’s growing importance to the national economy. 

Inbound tourism remained a major growth driver, with 29.3 million international visitors generating SAR176.6 billion in spending.

Domestic tourism also maintained strong performance, with 93.3 million domestic trips contributing SAR127.1 billion in expenditure.

The report highlighted a notable shift in visitor behaviour, with non-religious travel accounting for around 52% of total inbound overnight visits in 2025, compared with 44% in 2019.

The increase reflects the Kingdom’s success in expanding its tourism offering beyond traditional religious travel through investments in leisure, culture, entertainment and business tourism.

Tourism’s social impact also continued to grow.

Employment across tourism industries reached nearly 1.03 million jobs in 2025.

Saudi women represented approximately 47% of Saudi employees in tourism-related activities, a significant increase from just 5% at the end of 2018, highlighting the sector’s role in workforce participation, talent development and community empowerment. -TradeArabia News Service