RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has achieved a 156 percent increase in tourist arrivals during 2023 compared to 2019, according to the United Nations World Tourism Barometer report.
The Kingdom’s great success in the industry has contributed to the Middle East leading the global tourism recovery in relative terms, as it was the only region to achieve growth above pre-pandemic levels, attracting 122 percent more tourists in 2023 than in in 2019.
The UN World Tourism Organization said: “According to the first UNWTO World Tourism Barometer of the year, international tourism ended 2023 at 88 percent of pre-pandemic levels, with an estimated 1.3 billion international arrivals.
“International tourism receipts reached $1.4 trillion in 2023 according to preliminary estimates, about 93 percent of the $1.5 trillion earned by destinations in 2019.
“Preliminary estimates on the economic contribution of tourism, measured in tourism direct gross domestic product, point to $3.3 trillion in 2023, or 3 percent of global GDP. This indicates a recovery of pre-pandemic TDGDP driven by strong domestic and international tourism.”
The barometer predicts that international tourism is expected to recover to pre-pandemic levels this year, “initial estimates point to two percent growth above 2019 levels” and “will remain dependent on the pace of recovery in Asia and the development of existing economic and the risks of a geopolitical downturn.”
Reports released by the WTO confirm the Kingdom’s tourism industry’s significant contribution to global tourism growth, as Saudi Arabia surpassed G20 countries in the rate of increase in tourist arrivals in 2023, ranking second among the fastest growing tourist destinations. in the world in the first three quarters of last year.
Various tourist destinations in the Kingdom witnessed an increase in visitor numbers in 2023, and the country set a new record for foreign visitor spending, according to data released by the Saudi Central Bank earlier this month, which revealed that tourism receipts exceeded SR100. billion ($26.66 billion) for the first three quarters of 2023.
Outbound travelers from the Kingdom spent SR64.8 billion between January and September, creating a tourism balance of payments surplus 72 percent higher than the same period in 2022.
