A $ 600 expansion plan by this American hotel group will create more than 10,000 new jobs in Saudi Arabia.
Chris Nassetta, President and CEO of Hilton, is in Riyadh today. He has good reason to visit the KSA capital. He met with His Excellency Ahmed Al-Khateeb, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Tourism.
The new roles that will contribute to Saudi Arabia’s goal of 1 million new jobs in tourism as part of the Vision 2030 Economic Transformation Plan will be created as a result of Hilton’s rapidly growing hotel portfolio in the Kingdom.
Talk after the meeting, His Excellency Al-Khateeb said: “Hilton’s commitment to new hotels and more than 10,000 job creation today shows its confidence in the progress that Saudi Arabia is making as our tourism industry continues to develop and grow.
“We have an ambitious goal of welcoming 100 million international and domestic visitors by 2030. Working with the world’s leading hospitality and tourism companies like Hilton to expand the range and scope of options available to tourists is an integral part of our plans. As today’s announcement shows, we are making great strides. “
Chris Nassetta, Hilton President and CEO, said, “It is a great honor to be back in Saudi Arabia as we announce plans to add new brands and hotels to our portfolio here in destinations across the UK. I commend the work of the Department of Tourism in promoting the development of tourism and the hospitality industry – this is a truly remarkable time for tourism in Saudi Arabia and Hilton is well placed to play a leading role in Vision 2030 creating new jobs as we welcome visitors from all over the world. “
The company, which currently operates 15 hotels in KSA and has 46 more under development, plans to expand operations to more than 75 hotels, including the introduction of new brands such as LXR Hotels & Resorts, Curio Collection by Hilton, Canopy by Hilton and Embassy from Hilton.
This expansion will also support new tourism hotspots in the kingdom like Diriyah Gate, meet the goal of 100 million visitors by 2030 and increase tourism’s contribution to GDP to 10%.
Hilton will also support the Department of Tourism’s “Your Future is in Tourism” initiative, which aims to train and develop the next generation of Saudi talent for careers in the hospitality industry. In the first half of 2021, there were more than 148,600 Saudis who had already been trained for new tasks in tourism.
Hilton will support the program through its industry-leading programs such as Mudeer Al Mustakbal, which to date have resulted in more than 50 Saudi graduates entering senior positions at Hilton hotels.
The kingdom plans to develop 854,000 more hotel rooms, 70% of which will be financed by private funds.
After opening to international tourism in 2019, Saudi Arabia issued more than 400,000 eVisa – briefly the fastest growing tourism destination in the world before the pandemic.
Hilton is one of the world’s largest and fastest growing hospitality companies. The company operates more than 6,700 hotels in 122 countries and territories and under 18 brands worldwide. In Saudi Arabia, Hilton currently operates Waldorf Astoria, Conrad, Hilton, DoubleTree by Hilton and Hilton Garden Inn hotels.
Under the direction of His Excellency Ahmed Al-Khateeb, the Saudi Ministry of Tourism was established in February 2020 after Saudi Arabia opened to international leisure tourists for the first time in its history in 2019. Saudi Arabia aims to welcome 100 million tourist visits by 2030, increasing the sector’s contribution to GDP from 3% to 10%.
