It was not long ago when Saudi Artist Manal AlDowayan set up trampolines on the tan sands of Al Ula. When looked at from the sky, the trampolines looked like water puddles in the hot desert. These installed trampolines were intended to draw attention to the water crisis in the Al Ula region. The TikTok videos of the trampolines became viral and garnered a lot of attention from the public, which in a way, established the city of Al Ula on the world map of art.

Al Ula is undoubtedly Saudi Arabia’s best-kept secret. Al Ula, once a part of the Silk Route, has an amazing landscape with an old city dating back to the 12th century. People can find old mazes made of bricks and mud and incredible picturesque rock formations, naturally sculpted into beautiful shapes. The desert is also home to UNESCO’s world heritage site of Hegra, quite similar to the ancient city of Petra in Jordan.

Wadi AlFann project

To make Al Ula the next artistic and cultural destination for tourists in Saudi Arabia, the Royal Commission for Al Ula (RCU), in close collaboration with national and international artists, has come together to execute a challenging new project known as ‘Wadi AlFann’ or the ‘Valley of the Arts’. The project will span 65 square kilometers. The initiative is a significant part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s 2030 Vision. According to this, the country is attempting to build an economy which is not primarily dependent on oil and petroleum by promoting Saudi Arabia as a tourist destination and cultural hub.

The project has attracted some major international names, including artist Agnes Denes, who is famous for planting and harvesting two acres of wheat just a few buildings away from Wall Street, and James Turrell, who turned an extinct volcano in Arizona into a significant piece of art. The project has also attracted entertainment artists like Kanye West. The project is under the supervision of famous curator Iwona Blazwick, a former director of London’s Whitechapel Gallery.

Current developments

While there will always be concerns about censorship and restrictions in Saudi Arabia, things do seem to be changing. For example, the human image is crucial to Saudi artist Ahmed Mater’s vision even though Islamic art prohibits human illustration. Agnes Denes will build distinctive pyramids, and Manal AlDowayan will use a maze-like setup modeled on the old city’s mud walls to record the stories and memories of local people.

Returning to Al Ula’s development as an artistic and tourist destination, this process looks to be well underway. The city has successfully hosted Desert X, a Coachella-style art event; the largest Saudi gallery, Athr, has opened an exhibition space here; a number of opulent resorts are opening to give tourists a taste of glamping in the desert, and operators offer helicopter tours so that visitors can take pictures in the breathtaking scenery. Al Ula, which is about a four-hour journey from Madinah, also boasts of having an international airport.

Suggested Read: 8 Popular Places To Visit In Al Ula, A Global Cultural Hub In The KSA

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The Almutlaq Real Estate Investment Co. (AREIC), a division of the Al Mutlaq Group, and The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC), the company driving the largest regenerative tourism initiative in the world, have engaged in a joint venture partnership recently.

According to the agreement, the two companies will come together to develop a 159-key luxury resort — Jumeirah, The Red Sea. It will be established on the Red Sea’s hub island, Shura. The deal, which is worth over SAR 1.5 billion (USD 400 million), will steer the Red Sea Project initiated by the Saudi government. The luxurious resort is now under development and is scheduled to open to the public in the coming two years. A golf course, more than a hundred-berth marina, residential apartments, extensive shopping, eating, and entertainment centers will be there on Shura Island as components of the first phase of development for the Red Sea Project. The strategic collaboration, the first Joint Venture for TRSDC, shows the business sector’s belief in transforming the Red Sea into a new tourist destination.

Jumeirah, The Red Sea is a significant opening for Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Project. It is a part of the first wave of hotels to open along the giga-project. The Jumeirah team is sure that it understands the functioning of the market as the Dubai-based business starts to develop hotels in Saudi Arabia.

The joint venture

This joint venture investment furthered the private sector’s commitment to sustainable development and regenerative tourism. This agreement also boosts the Kingdom’s goals of Vision 2030 to diversify economic growth prospects.

The joint venture with AREIC illustrates the considerable willingness of the business sector to engage in and invest in Vision 2030, even though finance for phase one of The Red Sea Project is already secured and in place. In a similar framework, TRSDC is in simultaneous conversations with several many other companies about investing in Saudi’s most ambitious, the Red Sea Project. It wants to collaborate with these companies to invest in commercial assets, such as its hotels and resorts, leisure activities, and retail and eating establishments. Additionally, the developer’s increasing portfolio includes AMAALA and other projects that will soon be launched, providing new prospects for investors.

As the first-ever green financing in Riyals, TRSDC was recognized with two awards — the Best New Green Loan Financing Project Award at the International Finance Awards 2022 and the Project Finance Deal of the Year Award at the Capital Markets Saudi Arabia Awards in 2021.

The Red Sea Project has made considerable strides on the ground, with Phase One now more than halfway finished and a number of crucial assets, including corporations and offices, a four-star hotel, and the biggest landscape nursery in the area, already fully functioning.

The Red Sea Project will have 50 resorts when it is finished in 2030, delivering more than a thousand residential homes and hotel rooms across 20+ islands and around six inland places. The location will also have a luxury marina, golf course, entertainment venues, and an international airport.

Suggested Read: Top 13 Beach Resorts In Saudi Arabia For A Peaceful Retreat

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