In the remote and untouched northwest corner of Saudi Arabia, one of the kingdom’s most ambitious tourism development undertakings is taking shape. When complete, The Red Sea Project will feature 200 kilometres of beachfront spanning 90 untouched islands surrounded by coral reef and mangrove forests: an earthly paradise that will transform the hospitality landscape in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Built according to stringent sustainability standards, the first wave of openings will include nine luxury hotels with 1,700 guestrooms. The hotel partners include a trio of Accor brands – Raffles, Fairmont and SLS – which will be accompanied by a St. Regis and an EDITION property from the Marriott brand portfolio, an InterContinental and a Six Senses resort from IHG, a Jumeirah resort and a Grand Hyatt.
All but one of the resorts has been designed under the watchful eye of Foster + Partners, while the St. Regis, a 90-villa resort on the idyllic Ummahat Island, is the vision of Kengo Kuma & Associates.
The 76-key Six Senses Southern Dunes is currently under development on the mainland, surrounded by mountains and wadis, with a striking design inspired by ancient Nabatean culture. SLS Red Sea will deliver 150 rooms, suites and one- to four-bedroom villas to Shaura Island, conceived, like the other resorts on the island, as a ‘Coral Bloom’ by Foster + Partners, with interiors by Milan and New York-based Lissoni + Partners.
With 430 rooms and suites, Grand Hyatt The Red Sea will be the largest of the nine debut hotels, with a striking design that takes the coral bloom concept to the next level; while Raffles Red Sea will be the first Raffles property in Saudi Arabia, with elegant interiors by Citterio & Viel, six dining venues and a beach club.
By the time Phase One is complete at the end 2023, the first five islands will be home to 16 hotels offering a total of 3,000 guestroom, as well as a luxury marina, a Championship golf course, and leisure and entertainment offerings.
But this is just the beginning. By 2030, The Red Sea Project expects to welcome one million visitors per year and contribute US $5.3 billion to the Saudi Arabian economy, in line with the Kingdom’s ambitious Vision 2030 goals. Fifty hotels will offer a total of 8,000 rooms, complementing 1,000 residential properties covering 22 islands and six sites on the mainland.
When complete, the project’s international airport will make the destination accessible in less than eight hours for 80 per cent of the world’s population. A vast nursery is nurturing 15 million trees and plants that will breathe life into the desert landscape, home to dunes, mountains, canyons and ancient cultural and heritage sites.