From Riyadh to the World: How TOURISE 2025 Redefined the Future of Tourism

In November 2025, Riyadh did something rare in the world of conferences.
For three days, the city stopped being just a destination on the tourism map and became the place where the next era of tourism was designed.

Hosted at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center under the patronage of HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, TOURISE 2025 brought together more than 8,000 participants and over 140 speakers from governments, airlines, tech giants, investors, destinations, and global institutions. It was powered by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Tourism and Saudi Tourism Authority, immediately following the UN Tourism General Assembly in Riyadh. (Tourise)

For Saudi Arabia, and for everyone watching, TOURISE was more than a successful summit. It was a statement:
The future of tourism will not only be discussed in Riyadh, it will be built from Riyadh.

A Platform, Not Just Another Summit

Officially, TOURISE is a global tourism summit. In reality, it is built as a long-term platform.

From the start, its mission was clear. TOURISE was created to reset how tourism works and to help build a sector that is sustainable, equitable, and future-focused, not just bigger in numbers. That means bringing the public and private sectors under one roof and forcing difficult but necessary conversations about climate, jobs, over tourism, and technology.

The timing matters.

Tourism is one of the world’s largest employers and a major channel for investment, soft power, and cultural exchange. At the same time, it is vulnerable to shocks like pandemics, economic crises, and climate events. TOURISE positions itself exactly in that tension point:

• How do you grow tourism without breaking destinations?
• How do you welcome more visitors while protecting culture and nature?
• How do you use AI and data without losing the human connection that makes travel meaningful?

In Riyadh, these were not theoretical questions. They were treated as design briefs for the next fifty years.

From Cranes to Careers: Tourism as a Real Economy

A key message coming out of TOURISE 2025 is that tourism is not just a visitor economy, it is a career and opportunity economy.

According to official announcements, the summit helped stimulate around 113 billion dollars in investment portfolios aimed at boosting the global tourism sector, accelerating its transformation, and making growth more sustainable.

These investments touch:

• New destinations and infrastructure
• Digital and AI systems that manage flows and experiences
• Skills, education, and talent pipelines
• Sustainability projects and regenerative tourism

For Saudi Arabia, this connects directly to Vision 2030. The Kingdom has already passed 100 million visitors a year and is targeting 150 million yearly tourists by 2030, both domestic and international. Tourism is not a slogan. It is a core pillar of diversification, job creation, and SME growth.

TOURISE is where that ambition meets the rest of the world.

Rewriting the Infrastructure of Travel: From Visas to AI

If there is one area where TOURISE clearly showed Saudi leadership, it is in rewriting the infrastructure of travel. Two announcements stood out.

1. “Visa by Profile” – Turning a Card into a Key

At TOURISE25, Saudi Arabia launched “Visa by Profile”, described as the world’s first initiative that allows eligible Visa cardholders to obtain an electronic tourist visa in minutes, using their passport and Visa card details only.

It is more than a digital convenience. It sends a strategic message:

• Saudi is serious about removing friction for visitors.
• Visa and tourism policy can work together, not in separate silos.
• The Kingdom wants to make coming to Saudi as simple as buying a ticket.

As global competition for visitors intensifies, this type of innovation becomes a powerful differentiator.

2. The Agentic Tourism Initiative – A New Language for AI in Travel

The second major move was the launch of the Agentic Tourism Initiative and the Agentic Protocol for Tourism.

Announced in Riyadh, this is presented as the world’s first universal digital framework for how AI agents should operate across every stage of the traveller journey, from inspiration and planning to booking, flying, staying, and sharing.

What makes it different is the coalition behind it. Founding members include:

• Globant
• Red Sea Global
• HUMAIN
• Riyadh Air
• King Salman International Airport
• Amazon Web Services and Salesforce
• Hollibob and Trip.com

The core philosophy is simple but powerful:
let AI handle what is predictable and repetitive, and keep humans at the center for everything that requires empathy, judgment, and creativity.

Together, “Visa by Profile” and the Agentic Protocol show how Riyadh is not just hosting discussions about tourism. It is building the pipes that will carry the industry into its next chapter.

Destinations With a Conscience: Safety, Culture, and Integrity

Beyond technology and deals, TOURISE reinforced another message: the best destinations in the future will be those that grow with a conscience.

The TOURISE Destination Initiative was introduced as a global coalition to help cities and regions become “living laboratories” for tourism innovation. Early leadership includes Saudi Arabia’s Aseer Region, represented by HRH Prince Turki bin Talal, alongside global heritage cities such as Venice.

Its focus areas include:

• Using AI and data to enhance safety and crowd management
• Protecting heritage, nature, and culture as visitor numbers grow
• Designing tourism that benefits local communities, not replaces them

In parallel, the TOURISE Awards program rewarded destinations that excel in areas like sustainability, visitor experience, and innovation, using principles of inclusion, independence, and integrity. The awards are open and data driven, avoiding “pay to win” models that often damage credibility.

This combination – product, policy, standards, and recognition – is part of a larger Saudi message: growth matters, but how you grow matters even more.

The Voices Behind the Momentum

Every transformation needs faces and voices that carry the story. TOURISE 2025 showcased several of them.

At the center stands His Excellency Ahmed Al Khateeb, Minister of Tourism and Chairman of TOURISE. Across keynotes and announcements, he consistently framed tourism as a force for:

• Economic diversification and investment
• Job creation and skills development
• Peacebuilding and cultural understanding

He was also the one to personally announce “Visa by Profile” to the world, reinforcing the idea that tourism policy and innovation can move at startup speed when there is clear political will.

Alongside him, Princess Haifa bint Mohammed Al Saud, Vice Minister of Tourism, embodied another important shift. In sessions and media coverage, she highlighted how Saudi Arabia has moved from being known primarily for the Two Holy Mosques to ranking among the top global destinations in international arrivals, while also being recognized as one of the safest countries for solo female travellers. Her presence underlined both the rise of Saudi women in leadership and the country’s changing global perception.

The broader program also gave space to voices from the Global South – Africa, Asia, and Latin America – treating them as central players in tourism’s future, not just side panels. Together with airline CEOs, tech founders, mayors, and investors, they contributed to a narrative that tourism’s next growth wave will come from places that were historically underrepresented in global decision-making.

Why TOURISE 2025 Matters for Saudi Wins

Saudi Wins is about more than headlines. It is about documenting the real steps, the people, and the decisions that move the Kingdom forward.

TOURISE 2025 is one of those moments.

• It shows how far Saudi Arabia has come in tourism in a short time.
• It proves that the Kingdom can host, lead, and shape a global conversation, not just participate.
• It sends a signal to young Saudis that careers in tourism, data, AI, hospitality, storytelling, and destination management are not side paths. They are central to the nation’s future.

From new visa systems and AI protocols, to investment commitments and global coalitions, TOURISE 2025 turned Riyadh into the control room of tourism’s next era.

The story is still being written. But what happened in November 2025 is already clear:
Saudi Arabia is no longer only a destination on the map. It is now one of the places where the future of global tourism is decided.

And that, without doubt, is a Saudi win.