Overall, KSA tourism has reached 116 million in number of tourists in 2024, including 29.7 million inbound tourists and 86.2 million domestic tourists.
The number of inbound tourists increased by 8.4% compared to 2023 and the overnight inbound trips has increased by 29.6%. The number of tourists reached its peak in March 2024 with 3.16 million tourists. The primary purposes for inbound tourists in 2024 were Religious (41.5%), Leisure (25.2%), and Visiting Friends & Relatives (20.0%).
The number of domestic tourists increased by 5.2% compared to 2023 and the overnight domestic trips has increased by 8.7%. The number of tourists reached its peak in June 2024 with 9.61 million tourists. In 2024, Leisure was the leading purpose of trips, with 32.3 million tourists, accounting for 37.5% of all domestic tourism trips.
In 2024, there were 29.7 million inbound tourists recorded, of which 41.5% were tourists for religious reasons (12.3 million tourists), 25.2% for leisure (7.5 million tourists), 6.6% for business (2.0 million tourists), 20.0% tourists visiting friends and relatives (5.95 million tourists), and 6.6% were tourists for other reasons (2.0 million tourists).
The graph shows the inbound tourists number by main purpose of trips.
In 2024, there were 560 million overnight stays recorded for inbound tourists, reflecting a 29.6% increase compared to the previous year. As for domestic tourists, 539 million overnight stays were registered, representing a 8.7% more compared to the previous year.
The graph shows the annual evolution of the number of overnight stays by type of tourist.
In December 2024, the average length of stay of inbound tourists was 15.5 nights, reflecting a 30.0% increase compared to the same month in the previous year. As for domestic tourists, the average length of stay was 5.8 nights, representing a 9.2% more compared to the corresponding month of the previous year.
The graph shows the monthly evolution of the average length of stay by type of tourist.
In 2022, the expenditure made by inbound tourists was 90.9 billion, being 517.5% higher than the previous year.
The trip reasons that reported the highest expenditures by tourists were Religious ( 37.3 billion, corresponding to 41.0% of the total) and Visiting Friends & Relatives ( 22.9 billion, corresponding to 25.2% of the total).
The graph shows the annual evolution of expenditures incurred by inbound tourists according to the purpose of the visit.
In December 2024, the hotel occupancy rate in Saudi Arabia reached 58.6%, while the occupancy rate for apartments and other accommodation types stood at 55.6%.
The chart illustrates the monthly trend in occupancy rates across different types of accommodation.
In 2024, the gross travel propensity in Saudi Arabia was 3.1.
The chart shows the gross travel propensity in Saudi Arabia, measuring the frequency of outbound and domestic tourism trips relative to the total permanent resident population.
In 2024, inbound tourism expenditure as a share of GDP in Saudi Arabia was 3.7%.
The chart shows inbound tourism expenditure as a share of GDP in Saudi Arabia, reflecting the economic importance of foreign revenue inflows generated by spending from inbound visitors.
In 2024, inbound tourism expenditure relative to goods exports in Saudi Arabia was 15.2%.
The chart shows inbound tourism expenditure relative to goods exports in Saudi Arabia, reflecting the importance of tourism as an internationally traded service and its role in generating foreign revenue compared to goods exports.
In 2024, outbound tourism expenditure relative to goods imports in Saudi Arabia was 14.8%.
The chart shows outbound tourism expenditure relative to goods imports in Saudi Arabia, reflecting the importance of tourism-related spending abroad within the country’s goods import structure and its contribution to domestic revenue outflows.
In 2024, the direct contribution of tourism to GDP in Saudi Arabia was 4.9%.
The chart shows the direct contribution of tourism to GDP in Saudi Arabia, reflecting the gross value added generated by tourism-related industries in response to internal tourism consumption, including net taxes on products and imports.
In 2024, the share of direct tourism employment in total employment with domestic labor in Saudi Arabia was 5.5%.
The chart shows the share of direct tourism employment in total employment in Saudi Arabia, including domestic labor.
