Saudi Arabia introduces tourist visa for first time

If you like to get off the beaten track and venture through countries that are off the regular tourist route, then you might want to put this Gulf country onto your bucket list.

Although it might not be high on many travellers’ must-visit destinations list, Saudi Arabia is set to release tourism visas to travellers for the first time. 

Traditionally, visas have only been available to business travellers, religious pilgrims and people visiting their family, but the country has since announced plans that tourist visas could be introduced as early as 2018.

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Prince Sultan bin Salman, the head of the Saudi tourism board and national heritage commission, told CNN that the new visas are aimed at “people who want to literally experience this country and the grandness of this country.”

Tourism has traditionally been restricted to holy sites including Mecca, but as the country begins to lessen its reliance on oil, it is considered a key industry that could strengthen the economy, with targets set at 30 million visitors by 2030.

Tourism visa plans have been discussed in the past, but with investments in the works including resorts along the hundreds kilometres of the Red Sea’s coastline, which has even sparked the interest of billionaire travel tycoon, Richard Branson, it looks like this time it’s likely to go ahead.

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But it’s the political instability of the region, gender segregation and strict dress codes in the country that are seen as the biggest obstacle to appeal to a Western market.

“If Saudi Arabia manages to craft smart promotional campaigns focusing on its strength and addressing some of the perceived security issues, it could potentially tap into a vast regional travel market as well as capture some of the European travellers,” Nikola Kosutic, senior research manager at Euromonitor, told CNN.

What do you think? Would you go to Saudi Arabia for a holiday? Let us know in the comments section below.