10 factors behind the growth of domestic tourism 44% last year

Vice President of a local company, Khaled Al Yahya, attributed the registration of the internal tourism sector in Saudi Arabia with a strong growth of 44% during the past year, as a result of the rapid development in offers, which motivated travelers to explore his country, as well as expanding, and unique residence experiences and various activities.
Al -Yahya stated that among the reasons for the growth of the internal tourism sector is the reservations of families and groups that played a major role, as it recorded an increase exceeding 70%, in addition to the development of tourism infrastructure in the emerging destinations.
He pointed out that among the reasons: the low cost in airlines, the increase in air tracks, in addition to enhancing activities within the destinations, and the transformation in the patterns of reservations and flexible payment methods.

Interior tourism

He explained that tourism groups prefer destinations that provide rich experiences and various activities such as the major cities: Makkah, Riyadh, Jeddah, Medina and Al -Khobar.
He pointed out that the emerging tourist destinations gained increasing popularity, including Abha with its cold climate and mountainous views, and the Jubail with its pure beaches, in addition to Jizan with its coastal attractiveness, as well as Tabuk with its natural scenes, and Hail with its desert terrain suitable for adventures.

Travelers’ preferences

He noted the diversity of travelers ’preferences regarding the residence options, as luxury residence facilities in the five -star category acquired 36% of the seized hotel nights.
He explained that the economic hotels of the three stars and below, recorded 100% growth in families and groups’ reservations, bringing their share to 35% of the reserved hotel nights.
Al -Yahya said: The hotel apartments have become increasingly common, as families’ reservations in this category increased by 90%, while group reservations increased by 60%.

Airlines

He added that the demand for low -cost airlines witnessed a continuous increase, driven by the expansion of the air linking and the increase in tracks.
He pointed out that the air tracks increased by 45%, with the average value of the demand decreased by 7%, which made economic travel more attractive.
Khaled Al -Yahya highlighted the importance of activities within the destinations, as the tours, adventure sports, and cultural experiences became an essential part of the travel experience.
He explained that these activities enhance the satisfaction of travelers and their interaction with local communities, which makes the journey more distinctive.

Drama

Al -Yahya noted the great shift in the patterns of reservation, as applications acquired 76% of the total reservations, an increase of 67% compared to last year. The reservations were followed by the websites by 17%, while the retail offices continued their role in serving complex reservations.
Regarding the payment methods, Al -Yahya pointed out that flexible payment options, such as “buy now and pay later”, contributed to enhancing the ability of passengers to manage travel costs.
He added that the Apple Pay service represented 44% of the total internal reservations, which reflects the adoption of the growing travelers on technology to facilitate the travel experience.
Khaled Al -Yahya, Vice President of the Traveler Company, said that the transformations in domestic tourism embody the Kingdom’s 2030 vision, which aims to develop tourism as a basic pillar to diversify the national economy, expressing his optimism about the continuation of this momentum in the coming years.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is witnessing a remarkable and continuous growth in the tourism sector, which is one of the main pillars of the Kingdom’s 2030 vision. This growth was clearly reflected in 2024 data.