RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is set to expand its reach to Chinese travelers as the Kingdom’s tourism authority signs a deal to strengthen its position in the world’s largest travel market. The agreement signed between the Saudi Tourism Authority and Taiba Investments, a major hospitality and real estate firm in the Kingdom, aims to develop integrated residential ecosystems and a specialized network of hotels catering to tourists from China. The agreement includes offering various facilities and services as well as marketing materials designed for the Chinese market. Hassan Ahdab, chief hospitality operations officer at Taiba Investments, said: “This strategic partnership and its ambitious goals will play a pivotal role in enhancing Saudi Arabia’s tourism offerings to the world’s largest travel market, China.” The newly signed MoU also aligns with the Kingdom’s plans to increase passenger numbers and expand flight routes. He added: “This joint effort will positively impact the tourism sector in general and increase the number of tourist arrivals to the country, achieving one of Saudi Vision 2030’s most vital goals of revitalizing the tourism sector and attracting 150 million tourists by 2030.” Ahdab noted that Taiba is committed to making all necessary investments to achieve these goals in cooperation with the Saudi Tourism Authority. Moreover, under the terms of the new deal, STA and Taiba will also collaborate in sales and marketing efforts to attract Chinese tourists, establishing specialized teams and rolling out joint promotional initiatives to achieve their shared objective. Additionally, STA will provide administrative, technical, and advisory support to Taiba Investments in establishing specialized sales and marketing teams in both Riyadh and Shanghai. This collaboration will contribute to the implementation of targeted marketing campaigns to promote the Kingdom’s rich cultural heritage and its diverse tourism offerings in the Chinese market. From his side, President of Asia Pacific Markets at STA Alhasan Al-Dabbagh said: “We aim to make China one of the top three source markets by 2030 welcoming millions of Chinese travelers to experience the true home of Arabia.” “With unwavering commitment, Saudi Arabia has been proactively launching initiatives to be China-ready. This new partnership with Taiba Investments not only solidifies this endeavor but also marks a significant step towards integrating the private sector into our vision of transforming Saudi Arabia into a premier global tourist destination,” Al-Dabbagh further noted. Furthermore, the agreement will also see Taiba Investments and STA collaborate to host a conference in Riyadh in 2024 in an attempt to attract more Chinese tourists and provide a platform for Saudi tourism companies to connect with China’s travel industry leaders.