New Consumer Goods market report from Business Monitor International: "Saudi Arabia Tourism Report Q4 2013"

Boston, MA -- (SBWire) -- 11/22/2013 --The Saudi Arabia Tourism Report examines the significant long-term potential offered by the tourism industry, but highlights the potential downward pressure that regional uncertainty could have on arrival numbers as the political landscape changes. Furthermore, the country's strict entrance visa regulations could potentially act as a constraint on the sector's long-term growth potential.

Anecdotal evidence from the Kingdom's tourism sector would indicate that 2013 is likely to be another strong year for Saudi tourism, in line with BMI's thoughts on the subject. According to an August 2013 report from the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities, occupancy rates in the Eastern Province have risen over 80% during the summer months. The report cited comments from Abdul Lateef Al Bonyan, Executive Director of SCTA Branch, Eastern Province, who added that a variety of tourism events this year have done much to attract greater number of families, both from within Saudi Arabia and from abroad, to the province.

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As such, this quarter, BMI maintains its forecast of a 7% increase in arrivals for 2013, with an additional 38.6% increase over the 2013-2017 period. This implies total arrivals (for whatever purpose) of almost 24mn by the end of our forecast period in 2017. This strong increase in tourist arrivals means that BMI also holds an optimistic view on the future evolution of total tourism receipts over its forecast period to 2017.

We are currently forecasting 41.7% growth over the 2013-17 period, to reach US$13.09bn. This total will comprise US$0.88bn for transport services and US$12.21 for travel items.

Over the forecast period to 2017, one of the main drivers for the tourism industry will remain religious visits. Saudi Arabia is home to two of Islam's holiest cities, Mecca and Medina, and every year millions of Muslims go to Mecca for the Hajj, the largest annual pilgrimage in the world. Looking forward, we believe that business travel should prove another strong growth area. The SCTA has already given indications that it wishes to boost the Kingdom's presence in the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) space.

Saudi Arabia will remain reliant on Middle Eastern and Asian nations for the bulk of its inbound tourism flows for the remainder of the forecast period. This is largely due to the Kingdom's strict entrance visa regulations, which can deter some non-Muslim travellers. However, BMI believes that this is no bad thing for the sector's near-term development, with these regions currently experiencing strong economic growth and rising disposable incomes, especially when compared to the stagnation seen in other regions, notably Europe.

Overall, BMI remains optimistic about the outlook for the Saudi tourism industry. The country is planning significant increases in the national room supply, while airport capacity is also set to increase rapidly.

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