Cruise Saudi to develop 10 destinations by 2030

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Cruise Saudi destination Saba Beach opened in December 2024

Ten destinations are being developed by Cruise Saudi as it aims to attract 1.33 million cruise passengers to the kingdom by 2037.

Cruise Saudi oversees the cruise ecosystem and is tasked with developing ports, destination management and customer experience, with operational ports currently including Jeddah, Yanbu, Damman and private island Saba Beach.

Private island destinations, popular with cruisers in the Caribbean, are a focus of Cruise Saudi’s growth strategy, with a second island north of Jeddah under development. This second private island has direct docking capability for cruise ships, giving it an advantage over Saba Beach.

The soft launch of Saba Beach on Jabal AlSabaya took place on 21 December 2024. Jabal AlSabaya in the Red Sea, roughly 220 nautical miles from Jeddah, is exclusively for cruise line passengers.

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On completion, facilities will include a floating park, a restaurant, a shisha lounge, shops, a private beach, beachside cabanas and villas, a spa, and a range of water activities together including snorkelling excursions.

“Saba Beach, which is our first island development, gives us the possibility to continue diversifying our offering that we currently have in Saudi Arabia. We are talking about a great destination with some beaches with coral reefs,” said Serafin Blazquez, Executive Director at Cruise Saudi, on a recent episode of the MedCruise Insider podcast.

“We have two very ambitious targets, which are to open 10 destinations by 2030 and to reach 1.33 million cruise passengers by 2037.”

In order to reach those goals, Cruise Saudi is tapping the popularity of tourism hotspot AlUla by developing the coastal port city of Al Wajh, which Blazquez described as “our gateway to AlUla”.

Al Wajh port city is gateway to AlUla

AlUla is home to Saudi Arabia’s first Unesco World Heritage Site, Hegra, featuring ancient tombs and sandstone canyons, and is a distinctive inland excursion ideal for cruise itineraries.

Al Wajh is at the northern end of The Red Sea Project and Red Sea Global, the master developer of that giga project, is also tasked with refurbishing at Al Wajh Airport (EJH), including building a new international terminal.

Blazquez said Cruise Saudi was also working to expand the port at Jeddah to accommodate large cruise ships and increase daily passenger capacity.

Aroya Cruises, Saudi’s first homegrown cruise line, launched its Red Sea sailings in December 2024, with Arabian Gulf itineraries stopping in Dubai, Dammam, Muscat and Bahrain. Other itineraries will include ports of call in destinations along the Red Sea, including Egypt and Jordan, as well as visits to Saba Beach.

Aroya Cruises launched its Red Sea sailings in December 2024

Aroya currently owns one ship which has 1,678 luxury cabins, suites and villas, two swimming pools, 29 dining venues, a 1,018-seat theatre, shopping souk, beauty salon, spa and a dedicated kids’ zone. Aroya is looking to launch three more ships in the next decade.

Aroya Cruises expanded into the Mediterranean market this summer with six- and seven-night sailings to ports in Türkiye and Greece, starting in June.

More cruise lines are adding Middle East ports to their itineraries as cruise tourism in the region is on the rise and set to be further accelerated by Connections Cruise Arabia. The game-changing annual event, launching 18 September 2025, will bring together senior cruise leaders and stakeholders to shape the future of the sector in the region.

For all the latest cruise news, bookmark www.connectingtravel.com/cruise