Saudi Arabia’s AlUla Wants More Private Investors. It’s Pitching Billions in Tourism Deals
Photo Credit: A sandstone cliff in AlUla, Saudi Arabia Pexels / Tyrrel Burns
Skift Take
AlUla isn’t just selling sunsets anymore — it’s pitching investors on a future with a self-sustaining tourism and film economy. Think fewer subsidies, more Six Senses — and maybe even its own White Lotus.
Saudi Arabia’s Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) is seeking to attract private investors to the heritage destination as it transitions into the next phase of its development — one that moves beyond government-led funding into a model of shared ownership with the private sector.
“We’re embarking on about 41 billion SAR [around $11 billion] worth of investment opportunities in AlUla between now and 2030,” said Phillip Jones, Chief Tourism Officer for the RCU, who spoke with Skift at the Tourise Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Jones said roughly 6.5 billion SAR is specifically for tourism and “ready to go.”
The ultimate goal is a 50-50 balance between public and private investment. “As we go into phase two of the development of AlUla, it can’t all be public money,” he said. “We think
