Tourism

FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi's PIF downsizes foreign investment, turns to AI, domestic priorities

Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund is looking to invest in tourism, real estate and sustainability as its Vision 2030 deadline draws closer.

Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath addresses the media in Colombo on Oct. 24, 2024.

Sri Lanka arrests 3 men in plot to attack Israeli-run Jewish center: What we know

Three Sri Lankan nationals were arrested on Thursday after Israel's National Security Council urged Israelis to leave certain areas of the country due to "credible terrorism threats."

Rosaleen Carroll

By Rosaleen Carroll

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 31: U.S. President Joe Biden meets with Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, Amir of the State of Qatar, in the Oval Office on January 31, 2022 in Washington, DC. The two leaders were expected to discuss a range of issues, including global energy security as concerns about Russian natural gas supplies continue. (Photo by Tom Brenner-Pool/New York Times/Getty Images)

Qatar to join US visa-free travel list in first for Arab country

Qatar is set to become the second Middle Eastern country, behind Israel, to join the US Visa Waiver Program.

Employees of Aramco oil company work in Saudi Arabia's Abqaiq oil processing plant on September 20, 2019.

Analysis

Can Saudi Arabia afford giga-projects with oil prices under $75 per barrel?

Riyadh could soon run a current account deficit as oil revenue declines amid huge spending commitments toward ambitious Vision 2030 projects. Saudi-led OPEC has also deferred an output increase plan to allow more time to reach desired oil prices.

Jennifer Gnana

Samuel Wendel

By Jennifer Gnana , Samuel Wendel

Latest News

Saudia inks deal for electric flying taxis from Germany amid airline order spree

Media image of a Lilium eVTOL jet, download July 18, 2024.

Qatar Airways sees annual profit climb by 39% to record $1.67B

Reporters gather near a Qatar Airways cargo airplane on the tarmac of Hamad International Airport, as the first commercial flight to Saudi Arabia in three and a half years following a Gulf diplomatic thaw prepares for take-off, Doha, Qatar, Jan. 11, 2021.

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Turkey: UK issues sex-crime warning for travelers, reports 42 cases in 2023

OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images

As Hajj kicks off, Saudi Arabia looks to expand tourism sector

FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images

Sebastian Castelier

By Sebastian Castelier

In Dubai, reporting on regional business

Rescuers search for victims in Cairo, Egypt, on July 23, 2015, where at least 21 people were killed after a cargo boat collided with a ferry on the Nile River.

Two dead after truck plunges into Nile River in Egypt

The incident near Cairo was the latest transportation-related tragedy in Egypt.

Ayelet Shaked

Israel campaigns for inclusion in US visa waiver program

Israel is willing to enable Palestinian Americans to transit its territory on the way to the West Bank, in order to allow its citizens to travel to the US without obtaining a visa in advance.

Ultra-Orthodox Jewish travelers walk to their departing flights at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport in Lod, east of Tel Aviv, on Dec. 21, 2021.

Israel rolls back foreign travel curbs, but US tourists remain barred

Beginning Jan. 9, foreign travelers from nearly 200 countries deemed medium risk can travel to Israel.

Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid (L) presents Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry (R) with stolen Egyptian artifacts that were smuggled to Israel, at Tahrir Palace in Cairo on Dec. 9, 2021.

Will Egypt manage to bring home all smuggled artifacts?

As part of their continuous efforts to retrieve Egypt's stolen, prized antiquities, Egyptian authorities announced on Dec. 20 the recovery of 36 artifacts that had been smuggled to Madrid.

A city sightseeing bus is pictured parked outside Beirut's landmark Mohammad al-Amin mosque on May 20, 2019.

Lebanon campaigns to revive tourism amid economic crisis

Several campaigns such as the "Give Lebanon a Break" one launched by the Lebanese newspaper An-Nahar sparked widespread criticism from the Lebanese, who believe it has nothing to do with their reality and the economic collapse of the country.

Turkey tourism

Egyptian travel companies profit on Turkey visits due to falling lira

Egyptian tourism companies are seeking to take advantage of the low exchange rate of the Turkish lira to promote their programs in Turkey even after the summer season is over.

ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP via Getty Images

South Sudan angles for Egyptian tourism with first five-star hotel

Egypt's many tourism projects in the country include building South Sudan's first five-star hotel.

A tourist from India poses for photos in an F-35 Lighting II on display by Lockheed Martin at the Dubai Airshow 2021 on Nov. 14, 2021

UAE top destination for tourists from India

The UAE is looking to enhance its trade ties with India and recently sent a delegation to the country.

People look out over the Mediterranean Sea from the coastline of Alexandria, Egypt, May 21, 2016.

Egypt reclaims land for new port city, but environmental concerns loom

Egypt is constructing a new port city near Alexandria by reclaiming land from the Mediterranean Sea, but the project has sparked fears over negative environmental impacts.

Laborers clean chandeliers during the restoration of Mohammed Ali Shubra Palace, Cairo, Egypt, Sept. 12, 2019.

Life returns to 1800s palace in Egypt

The Egyptian authorities are preparing to reopen the palace of Mohammed Ali Pasha in the Shubra area, north of Cairo, after extensive restoration works.

THOMAS COEX/AFP via Getty Images

Israeli tourists return to Jericho

Israeli tourists increasingly see affordable Jericho as desirable vacation option.

Workers paint window frames during the restoration of Mohammad Ali Shubra Palace in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, on Sept. 12, 2019.

Egypt reinvents Qubba Palace as history museum

The Egyptian government has decided to transform Qubba Palace, one of the largest presidential palaces, into a museum housing several historical museums and gardens.