Skift Take
Saudi Arabia has hit its tourism target seven years early, but there is still work to be done to be a global travel super power.
Saudi Arabia's tourism minister says the kingdom counted more than 100 million tourists in 2023 – the numbers show growth in visits from international travelers, but that it still has work to do to become a globally competitive destination.
Here's the count shared by tourism minister Ahmed bin Aqeel Al Khateeb:
Saudi saw 77 million domestic tourists and 27 million international ones, totaling 104 million visits. 77 million is the same number of domestic tourists Saudi had in 2022. The overall figure was boosted by a 11 million international visitors. Al Khateeb highlighted a new strategy set by crown prince Mohammed bin Salman to attract 150 million tourists by 2030, with 80 million domestic and 70 million international tourists. Total spend