Saudi Tourism Authority Signs MOU with Emirates Airline

(18 Feb 2022)  The Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Emirates airline aimed at boosting inbound tourism.

Under the MOU, the Saudi Tourism Authority will explore opportunities to jointly collaborate with Emirates on key initiatives to enhance the Kingdom’s global tourism competitiveness, including promotional activity and travel trade support across key global source markets to convert interest into bookings, sharing insights around market and customer trends, amongst other initiatives.

The airline will also explore opportunities to align its schedules from key source markets in the Emirates network to its gateways in Saudi Arabia, providing greater connectivity and convenience for its customers and further developing inbound tourism arrivals.

Saudi Tourism Authority signs a MOU with Emirates airline

The airline currently operates 53 weekly flights to Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Medina, carrying more than 25 million passengers to and from the Kingdom since the start of its services in 1989.

"The memorandum of understanding signed between the Saudi Tourism Authority and Emirates Airline will enable us to reach over 120 destinations around the world and attract tourists from these destinations to various Saudi destinations,” said Mr. Fahd Hamidaddin, CEO and Board Member of the Saudi Tourism Authority. “The Saudi Tourism Authority continues its efforts to attract tourists, promote tourism destinations in Saudi Arabia by targeting the most important major markets in the GCC, the region and the world, and forging important partnerships to achieve the goals of the Authority and the aspirations of the Saudi Tourism Ecosystem, which is in harmony with Vision 2030."

The partnership between STA and Emirates is part of the Saudi Arabia’s efforts to build a framework of cooperation and integration with partners in the private sector.

The framework will support the wider travel trade in promoting tourist destinations in Saudi to travelers from all over the world and developing products services that enable visitors to experience the country.

Sir Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline, said, “We’re proud to strategically partner with the Saudi Tourism Authority and support its efforts to unlock the immense potential and attractions of the Kingdom’s vibrant culture, heritage and stunning biodiversity to the world. KSA has positioned itself as a must-visit destination and this is just the beginning. We have a shared objective to contribute to the Kingdom’s broader tourism plans to attract a diverse range of visitors, strengthen awareness of its iconic sites, and make them more accessible through enhanced connectivity. We look forward to growing our relationship with the STA and to positively impact the Kingdom’s tourism growth.”