Over 6 million pilgrims perform Umrah during current season while tourist inflow soars 581% in 4 years

Over 6 million pilgrims perform Umrah during current season while tourist inflow soars 581% in 4 years

Okaz/Saudi Gazette RIYADH — Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb described the performance of the Saudi tourism sector during the first quarter of 2023 as unprecedented and historical in terms of the number of tourist visitors and amount of tourism spending. “Over six million pilgrims have performed Umrah during the current season while the percentage of incoming tourists for the purpose of entertainment and holidays shot up 581 percent in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same period in 2019, thanks to the simplified electronic visa procedures and remarkable growth in facilities and services in the Kingdom’s tourist destinations,” he said. The minister made the remarks while attending his monthly meeting with investors in the Saudi tourism sector. Saudi Tourism Authority CEO Fahd Hamidaddin and a large number of stakeholders and investors in the tourism sector from various regions of the Kingdom attended the virtual meeting. Al-Khateeb stressed that the ministry will never neglect three issues that are at the core of its work, which are high quality, everyone’s compliance with issuing the necessary licenses to practice the activity, and Saudize jobs in the tourism sector. The minister emphasized that the results achieved by the Kingdom’s tourism sector during