Articles
Youth Challenges: Unemployment, Education, and the Social Contract
Saudi Arabia has a fairly young population, with over 67% of all Saudis under the age of 34 years (34 years), and the 15-34 age group accounting for 36.7% of the entire population. This youthful demographic …
The Asir Mountains: Arabia's Verdant Highland Refuge
The Asir Mountains, which rise sharply along Saudi Arabia's southwestern border with Yemen, offer a landscape so unlike popular depictions of Arabia that tourists frequently struggle to reconcile these …
Jeddah's Al-Balad: The Gateway to Mecca and Crossroads of Cultures
Al-Balad, located on the eastern bank of the Red Sea in the center of contemporary Jeddah, is a historic district that served as the primary entrance for Muslim pilgrims heading to Mecca for over a …
Al-Ula: Arabia's Outdoor Museum and Cultural Crossroads
While Saudi Arabia has several rising tourism sites, Al-Ula stands out as possibly the most successful implementation of Vision 2030's cultural tourism goals. This ancient oasis valley in northwestern Saudi …
Women's Empowerment Under Vision 2030: Progress and Paradoxes
Women's rights have been among the most prominent and contentious aspects of Saudi Arabia's rapid societal development under Vision 2030. Between 2017 and 2026, the Kingdom implemented sweeping …
The Rub' al Khali: The World's Largest Continuous Sand Desert
The Rub' al Khali—the "Empty Quarter"—is the world's largest continuous sand desert and one of the most hostile locations. This vast wilderness of towering dunes, salt flats, and desolate gravel plains has …
Diriyah: The Birthplace of the Saudi State
Diriyah, the ancestral house of the Saudi royal family and the birthplace of the first Saudi state, is located on the northern outskirts of Riyadh in the Wadi Hanifah valley. This UNESCO World Heritage …
Vision 2030: Saudi Arabia's Tourism Transformation
Saudi Arabia's tourism industry has gone through one of the most dramatic revolutions in world travel history. For decades, the Kingdom was mainly closed to foreign leisure tourism, with visitor permits …
Al-Ula and Hegra: Arabia's Ancient Nabataean Marvel
Al-Ula is an amazing archaeological environment located in Saudi Arabia's distant northwest deserts, approximately 1,100 kilometers (683 miles) from Riyadh. It has remained virtually unknown to …
Jeddah: The Kingdom's Cosmopolitan Gateway and Emerging Urban Tourism Hub
While much emphasis is placed on Saudi Arabia's archaeological wonders and mega-project developments, the Kingdom's second-largest city, Jeddah, quietly exemplifies a different aspect …
The Red Sea Coast: From Ancient Trade Routes to Luxury Tourism Frontier
Saudi Arabia's western coastline along the Red Sea stretches for about 1,800 kilometers (1,118 miles), from the Gulf of Aqaba in the north to the Yemeni border in the south, and includes one of the world's most …
Religious Tourism: The Economic and Spiritual Significance of Hajj and Umrah
Saudi Arabia holds a unique position in global tourism that no other country does—as custodian of Islam's two holiest sites, the Grand Mosque in Makkah (Mecca) and the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah …