To continue positioning Saudi Arabia as a global superyacht destination, The Saudi Red Sea Authority (SRSA) has granted 12 new licenses for the purposes of marina construction, leisure marine recreation, and cruise ship operations.
Of the permits handed – in out in the past two months – NEOM’s Sindalah Island Marina received a construction license and a marine tourism marina operator license. Sindalah Marina welcomed its first group of superyachts in late October, as part of Red Sea Week, with 53 vessels in attendance for the launch. The marina, which accommodates 79 berths for superyachts up to 180 meters in length, boosted superyacht traffic in the Red Sea.
Other marine tourism marina operator licenses issued by SRSA were awarded to Dolphin Beach Resort in Yanbu and Jeddah Municipality Marina. In addition, with plans to expand the tourist experience, Red Sea Cruises (Cruise Saudi) received a cruise ship operator license, other cruise vessels were granted route licenses, and four yacht companies were granted technical recreational tourism licenses.
Other Permits Granted in 2024
The grant of the aforementioned licenses continues Saudi Arabia’s plans to open up the Red Sea for maritime tourism. In the past year, SRSA awarded an has an operator license to Jeddah Yacht Club and Marina, the first international harbor to receive this license. Meanwhile, six tourist yacht agents in Saudi Arabia received yacht tourism licenses. The regional and international companies to receive licenses from SRSA include Faisal M. Higgi & Associates Co. Ltd., Yusuf bin Ahmed Kanoo, Hill Robinson, JLS Yachts LLC, GAC, and HASCO Group.
READ: SRSA Issues First-Ever Yacht Chartering Licenses in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Red Sea Authority
The Saudi Red Sea Authority is a government entity formed in 2021 to build and regulate the coastal tourism sector in Saudi Arabia. Over the past three years, SRSA has enhanced integration between the relevant parties through issuing licenses and permits, developing requisite strategies and policies, adding safeguards to preserve the marine environment, and determining the requirements for marine infrastructure.
In September 2024, The Saudi Red Sea Authority (SRSA) and The International Council of Marine Industry Associations (ICOMIA) have agreed on a new strategic alliance in an effort to boost the region’s coastal tourism sector.
Through the newly formed partnership, ICOMIA plans to work toward this goal with SRSA by establishing connections with the global recreation boating industry, providing technical insight, and offering access to specialist training and development.
In other recent developments, the SRSA has set tourist goals for Saudi Arabia, as a recently published report “Investing in Coastal Tourism” revealed the Kingdom’s plans to attract 19 million visitors and create over 200,000 jobs by 2030, emphasizing the role marine tourism plays in this respect as the plans also plan on contributing approximately SAR85 billion (US$22.64 billion) to GDP by 2030