Saudi Arabia's inbound tourism records SAR 86.9B spending in H1

The Ministry of Tourism issued preliminary data for tourism statistics for H1 2023, where the total number of tourists for all purposes in the Kingdom recorded 53.6 million, with 14.6 million incoming tourists and 39 million local tourists.
 

Total tourism spending amounted to SAR 150 billion, with SAR 86.9 billion from inbound tourism and SAR 63.1 billion from local tourism during the same period, according to a statement.
 

Meanwhile, inbound tourism recorded historic numbers in H1 2023, with a surge of 142% in the number of tourists and 132% in the rate of tourism spending year-on-year.
 

The number of incoming tourists grew for all purposes in general, topped by entertainment and holidays with 347% growth YoY.
 

Domestic tourism also saw an increase in spending by 16% in H1 2023 YoY. This is as a result of an increase in the average length of stay from 4.6 nights in H1 2022 compared to 6.3 nights in H1 2022. The purpose of the visit for entertainment and holidays was the highest in terms of the number of tourists, representing 43% of the total tourists, with 18% growth YoY.
 

In terms of outgoing tourism, the number of outgoing tourists - both citizens and non-Saudi residents - rose by 37% YoY, and their tourism spending climbed 74% during the same period. The rise in overall tourist departures was spurred by the return to pre-pandemic conditions in most destinations around the world, in addition to the start of the summer season and school holidays in June.
 

Departing non-Saudi tourists constituted 45% of the total departing tourists, a rise of 24% YoY, while their share of the total tourism spending outside the Kingdom amounted to about 66%.
 

The average length of stay for non-Saudi residents for the same purpose in H1 2023 was 45.5 nights, compared to 19.3 nights in the corresponding period of 2022, according to the statement.
 

In addition, the number of Saudi tourists departing abroad jumped 49%, especially to neighboring countries. Spending by Saudi tourists departing abroad also rose by 32% YoY, while the average spending per night fell from SAR 559 to SAR 332 for Saudi tourists departing during the same period.

Source : Argaam