Saudi tourists spent $7.4B around the world in 2015

Saudi Arabian tourists are among the highest spenders while travelling, registering more than SR30 billion ($7.4 billion) annually, with 72 countries offering the kingdom's citizens the option to travel visa-free, said a report.

The rise in the number of countries giving visas to Saudis at airports shows the trust the countries repose on Saudi citizens, their purchasing power and their wish to enter countries either for investments, travel or work, according to a report in Arab News.

There are 72 countries which Saudis can go to without a prior visa from their consulates and embassies in Saudi Arabia; the visas for these countries are obtainable at the airports there, the report said citing a senior official.

According to official, European and East-Asian countries are most preferred by Saudi tourists. Top destinations include Switzerland, Spain, Italy, France, German, Austria and in the east Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

The jump in the number of travellers from Saudi Arabia is also a result of many countries setting up offices in the kingdom to promote tourism, which has worked because of the cheap prices in these destinations.

According to Khaled Bawazir, an investor, expenditures of Saudi tourists have increased lately and this is naturally because of the fact Saudis want to keep traveling abroad.

Bawazir also noted the need to build a total touristic system in future to diversify internal tourism and build the GDP by 5 per cent. He has called on touristic investors to expand their projects with new funding channels and implant Vision 2030, which aims to make the kingdom a global investment powerhouse.