RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s tourism industry has surpassed expectations. The Kingdom hit its Vision 2030 goal of attracting 100 million visitors seven years early — reaching a record 160 million inbound and outbound travelers in 2024.

But with success comes strain — hotel shortages, rising room rates, and soaring demand are testing the industry’s capacity.

One man watching this transformation from within is Muin Serhan, the Jordanian CEO of Amsa Hospitality, a Saudi-born company that aims to redefine the mid-tier hotel market. Having spent over 25 years in the Kingdom, Serhan has witnessed the country’s rapid evolution firsthand.

Appearing on the Arab News current affairs program “Frankly Speaking,” Serhan praised Saudi Vision 2030 and the transformation sweeping the tourism ecosystem — a change he describes as “massive.”

“I spent half of my age in Saudi Arabia, more than 25 years,” he told “Frankly Speaking” host Katie Jensen.

“So I’ve seen the transformation of tourism in particular and the ecosystems in Saudi Arabia. “I can tell you (of) the massive changes happening in the new Saudi Arabia, as we always call it.”

Saudi Arabia’s original goal of attracting 100 million visitors by 2030 has now been eclipsed. 

“We achieved 160 million visitors inbound and outbound,” Serhan said, citing recent studies. “And the target for 2030 is to reach 150 million tourists … I think it’s achievable. We’re going to cross this 150 million with all the strategic activities in the region.”

To meet surging demand, Amsa Hospitality has announced ambitious expansion plans. The company, launched in 2022 by founder and managing director Mohammad Alathel, aims to grow from 770 hotel keys to more than 10,000 over the next seven to eight years.

“As we speak, we have 770 keys,” Serhan said. “By next year, we will double this number to 1,500. The pipeline that we have into projects will land into the 10,000 keys.”

This growth, he said, will primarily target underserved regions beyond Riyadh and Jeddah. Amsa Hospitality’s strategy is built on extensive research into 17 destinations across the Kingdom, where mid-tier hotels — typically four-star or upper three-star — are in short supply.

“We followed a very strategic, holistic approach to the Kingdom, looking into 17 destinations where we studied the supply and demand and built a gap analysis,” he said.

Among the new locations are Abha, Hail, and Al-Qassim — secondary markets with strong potential.

“We’ve seen a huge potential in Abha, where we have another hotel. We have a hotel already, which opened last year. A future hotel will open in Hail — another futuristic destination with a huge potential for sport activities,” he said, citing the popularity of Rally Hail as a major draw for adventure tourists.

By 2027, Serhan expects Amsa to be ready for an initial public offering, supported by the company’s expanding portfolio and development pipeline.

Serhan believes Amsa’s focus on mid-tier hospitality fills a crucial gap in the Saudi market, balancing affordability and quality at a time when many new hotels skew toward the ultra-luxury segment.

“There is a huge demand and this is a demand and supply story,” he said. “This is normal in any other destination, if you look to New York, to London, and as well as to Dubai, we are all more or less competing.

“Having said that, there is also a demand for the five-star luxury hotels as well as the mid-tier, and here we are a major player.”

e added: “Not all clients are five-star or ultra-luxury. You still need to cater for the four-star and three-star, and even the hotel apartment case for those who would like to have more space.”

That tiered offering, he said, is key to Riyadh’s readiness for major global events such as Expo 2030, the FIFA World Cup 2034, and the completion of gigaprojects like Qiddiya and Diriyah.

“Diriyah will be featuring more than 39 hotels. We will have one of them,” Serhan said. And moving forward in Diriyah two-stage, that’s in a future development on a four-star tier.”

He added: “Going into another project, which is very important for us is Qiddiya, which is also another important gigaproject, which features a lot of entertainment sites. That needs to be complemented by hotels to sustain the area.”

Amsa’s rapid growth, Serhan said, would not be possible without the company’s active and visionary Saudi ownership.

“We’re fortunate that we are working with a very active ownership,” he said. “Our owners, we give them the vision that Amsa Hospitality is all built around sustainability … not only in growth … (but) in the way we build our hotels.”

From design to construction, Amsa aims to weave sustainability and local identity into every property.

“From the design concept, we develop our hotels to be unique, to have a local acceptance and a local inheritance as well,” Serhan said.

“So we copy what is in the market, in Al-Qassim, for example, in Hail, and we have this narrative in our design. That becomes our design storytelling when we build our hotels.”

The company’s focus on Arabian hospitality — international standards with a local touch — is a key differentiator in an increasingly crowded field.

“Yes, we are an international company operating on international brands, but with a local Arabic, Saudi hospitality service,” Serhan said.

“For example, what we do for a welcoming in Hail — we give that flavor of Hail welcoming phrases … Even the way we serve, the uniforms we wear — it all stands out.”

Saudi Arabia’s gigaprojects are transforming the map of tourism. For Amsa Hospitality, that means building capacity not just in the big cities, but also in new destinations such as AlUla, Tabuk, NEOM, Al-Ahsa, and Al-Bahah.

“AlUla has its own flavors and … the unique experience when it comes to the customer journey,” Serhan said. “We understand it’s a bit removed from the major cities, Riyadh or Jeddah. But those areas have their own visitors. People who basically want to be in AlUla and just in AlUla.”

Amsa is currently working with the Royal Commission of AlUla on plans to develop a 120-key four-star hotel in the heritage-rich city.

“At the coming Future Hospitality Summit, we’re going to announce the signing of one hotel,” he said. “It will be one of the flagships for us, with a unique brand as well. And the brand came hand-in-hand with the destination as itself. And then after three months, we’re going to announce another hotel. So I think our portfolio, by quarter, will be increasing by one asset.”

The company also has plans for developments in Makkah and Madinah, where vast new districts such as Masar, Thakher, and Rua Al-Madinah are set to redefine religious tourism.

“Makkah has a famous project, Masar — I had the opportunity to walk through this project. It’s something out of this world,” he said.

“Madinah is another story to tell with future developments from Rua Al-Madinah besides the development around the area.”

As Saudi Arabia prepares to host the world in the decade ahead — from Riyadh Expo 2030 to the 2034 FIFA World Cup — the pressure is on the private sector to deliver. For Serhan, that challenge is as much about identity as it is about infrastructure.

“As a hotelier, when we have the vision that Saudi Arabian hospitality tourism should stand out from all other regions, that’s a complete cooperation we have headed by the minister of tourism,” he said.

“And this cooperation ended up delivering our core value at Amsa Hospitality, for Arabian hospitality: To be unique.”

For Serhan, the journey is personal. Having devoted much of his life to the Kingdom’s transformation, he views Amsa’s growth not just as a business success story, but as a reflection of Saudi Arabia’s own evolution.

“We all feel proud that we are part of this success journey.”