Saudi tourism boom sees exhibitor...

Dedicated Saudi Land hall to showcase kingdom at Arabian Travel Market 2025

Saudi Arabian exhibitors are up 16% at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2025, reflecting the kingdom’s booming tourism market.

Visitors to the global gathering of travel trade professionals, which takes place at Dubai World Trade Centre in the UAE from 28 April to 1 May, will be able to visit a dedicated Saudi Land hall to discover the latest projects and opportunities in the kingdom.

Saudi welcomed 30 million international visitors in 2024, up 9.5% on the previous year, and aims to attract 70 million by 2030, putting it in the top seven global destinations.

In addition to the Saudi Tourism Authority (STA), returning exhibitors include airlines Saudia and Flynas, Qiddiya Investment Company and Cruise Saudi. Notable first-time exhibitors include Flyadeal, Riyadh Air, Diriyah Company, Aseer and StayKSA.

Saudi Land, an expanded version of last year’s Saudi Village, will showcase the kingdom’s culture, heritage and tourism.

Saudi Village at ATM 2024

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME at ATM said STA's commitment to the event highlights the kingdom’s "rapid progress" in establishing itself as a world-class tourism hub and reflects the broader momentum of investment, innovation and ambition that is driving the region’s travel sector forward.

“This year, ATM 2025 will have one of the strongest Saudi presences to date, with leading airlines, hospitality brands and cruise representation taking centre stage.”

The hospitality numbers speak for themselves. Saudi’s tourism sector saw hotel rooms more than double in Q3 2024, soaring from 214,600 to 443,200, while the kingdom has plans for an additional 320,000 hotel rooms.

According to the Q4 2024 Hotel Construction Pipeline Trend Report for the Middle East from Lodging Econometrics (LE), Saudi has a current pipeline of 316 hotels, accounting for 83,275 rooms.

The ATM Conference Programme will feature key speakers outlining the growing global importance of Saudi.

On 28 April, Turky Kari, Executive Director of Marketing, Aroya Cruises, will join a panel on the Global Stage to explore the 'Considerations and Implications of Involving Communities in Destination Revitalisation'.

Abulkarim Aldarwish, MEA President, Saudi Tourism Authority, will join tourism leaders and travel experts to discuss 'Big Ticket Events: Global Impact and Learnings' on the Business Events Stage.

ATM 2025, held under the theme Global Travel: Developing Tomorrow’s Tourism Through Enhanced Connectivity, is due to welcome 55,000 attendees and will have more than 2,800 exhibitors from 161 global destinations.

For more information, visit hub.wtm.com; to arrange a meeting with Connecting Travel at our ATM 2025 stand, email nadine.bridi@connectingtravel.com

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