Spear’s Review

Fahd Hamidaddin is the strategist turning Saudi Arabia’s tourism ambitions from vision into reality. As CEO of the Saudi Tourism Authority, he has become a key executor of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s $100 billion investment in tourism and sport – twin pillars of the kingdom’s Vision 2030 plan to diversify the economy and project global influence in the post-oil era.

The target is audacious: 150 million visitors by 2030. Yet under Hamidaddin’s leadership, international arrivals are rising sharply, and Saudi Arabia’s presence on the global stage is expanding. Mega-projects such as the Red Sea Global initiative, a string of high-end resorts backed by brands including St. Regis, Six Senses and Ritz-Carlton Reserve, are reshaping perceptions of the kingdom. Arguably the best known is NEOM, ‘a visionary project that is set to transform the Red Sea coast of north-west Saudi Arabia into a futuristic city unlike any other’.

At the same time, headline-making sporting events – from Formula One to heavyweight boxing – are being positioned as gateways to tourism and drawing global attention.

Hamidaddin’s influence lies in marrying spectacle with strategy: promoting Saudi Arabia’s heritage and hospitality while forging partnerships with the world’s most recognisable luxury and sporting brands. In doing so, he has recast the kingdom not merely as a place to visit, but as one of the fastest-rising destinations in global tourism – and a linchpin in the economic transformation of the Gulf.

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