Tourism Red Sea Global’s airport ‘racing towards completion’ By Edmund Bower May 13, 2025, 7:48 AM Red Sea Global When fully operational, Red Sea International Airport will have a peak capacity of 900 passengers an hour Main terminal to open by summer DAA International to manage airport Demand for flights builds, says RSG Red Sea International Airport will be “fully operational” within “a couple of months”, according to an executive at Red Sea Global. The airport “is racing towards completion”, said Ben Edwards, group head of cost, commercial and procurement at the Saudi resort developer. “We’re gradually seeing the network of flight operations increasing as the demand in the resort builds up.” The airport began receiving international passengers in April 2024 with bi-weekly flights from Dubai, but remains only partially operational. The opening of the main terminal, by summer this year, will bring the airport closer to its goal of serving 1 million tourists a year by 2030. Red Sea International, which is designed for a peak capacity of 900 passengers an hour, will be 100 percent powered by solar energy. It will be managed by DAA International, an Irish company that has also been contracted to operate King Abdulaziz airport in Jeddah. AlUla expects record tourism in 2026 after marketing push Red Sea giga-project launches new island despite PIF budget cuts ‘Tourism is the new oil’, says man trying to bring 150m people to Saudi “It’s a massive year for us,” said Edwards, speaking at the Saudi Giga Projects conference in Riyadh on Monday. Red Sea Global, which is owned by the Public Investment Fund, expects to oversee 11 hotel openings on the west coast of Saudi Arabia by the end of this year. Its Red Sea and Amaala resorts cater towards the luxury end of the tourism market. In April, its head of hospitality, Sébastien Carre, told AGBI that Red Sea Global was looking to announce projects in other parts of Saudi Arabia and overseas, on the back of the early success of the project. “The projects are funded and advancing ahead of schedule,” Carre said. Its hotels are running at between 50 and 60 percent occupancy, “which, for the first year of operations, is very good”. Register now: It’s easy and free AGBI registered members can access even more of our unique analysis and perspective on business and economics in the Middle East. Why sign uP Exclusive weekly email from our editor-in-chief Personalised weekly emails for your preferred industry sectors Read and download our insight packed white papers Access to our mobile app Prioritised access to live events Register for free Already registered? Sign in I’ll register later Register now: It’s easy and free AGBI registered members can access even more of our unique analysis and perspective on business and economics in the Middle East. Why sign uP Exclusive weekly email from our editor-in-chief Personalised weekly emails for your preferred industry sectors Read and download our insight packed white papers Access to our mobile app Prioritised access to live events Register for free Already registered? Sign in I’ll register later
