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Saudi mountain resort Desert Rock edges closer

By Andy Sambidge and Shane McGinley
Red Sea Global
The mountain resort's accommodation will include 48 villas and 12 hotel rooms
  • Desert Rock near Red Sea launched in 2021
  • Major structural and infrastructure works are ‘well advanced’
  • Construction has involved 195 metres of tunnelling

Construction work on Desert Rock, a Saudi mountain resort being built into the rockface, is more than half complete, developer Red Sea Global has confirmed.

Launched in 2021, the resort is located in the wadi vistas in the west of the kingdom.

Designed by Oppenheim Architecture in the US, guests will enter Desert Rock through a hidden valley nestled between the mountains.

Saudi Desert Rock resortRed Sea Global
One featured area is described as a lagoon oasis

Accommodation will include 48 villas and 12 hotel rooms within the mountain.

Facilities will include a spa and fitness centre, dining areas and an area described as “a feature lagoon oasis.”

“Desert Rock will provide guests with uninterrupted spectacular views while preserving the natural landscape for future generations to enjoy,” John Pagano, Group CEO of RSG, said in a press statement in 2021.

Saudi Desert Rock resortRed Sea Global
Dining areas accompany a spa and fitness centre at the resort

In a construction update on Wednesday, RGS said it had fully excavated and formed the 10 rooms integrated into the mountainside, as well as all 195m of tunnelling.

It added that major structural and infrastructure works are well advanced, including the building of the wadi villas, guest hubs, back of house, and other structures. 

RSG, the company behind tourism destinations Amaala and The Red Sea, also said its first three hotels on the Red Sea will open this year, and first domestic flights are set to take off from its international airport before the end of 2023.

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