Number of tourists in Saudi Arabia topped 100 million last year

Cairo: The number of tourists in Saudi Arabia surged to more than 100 million last year, a senior Saudi official has said, as the country seeks to become a global tourist destination.

Saudi tourism Minister Ahmed Al Khateeb said at an investment forum in Riyadh that the kingdom’s tourism sector last year fulfilled a target of 100 million tourists including 77 million local visitors and 27 million tourist arrivals.

He cited a strategy charted by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman envisaging 150 million tourists in the country by the year 2030 including 80 million local tourists and 70 foreign million arrivals.

The aim is also to make Saudi Arabia rank among the world’s top 10 tourist attractors.

“The state has committed itself to training more than 100,000 young men and women per year,…