AlUla's Dream Comes True as Top Global Tourist Destination

AlUla includes the ancient Nabataean city of Hegra or Al-Hijr, registered as the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Kingdom, and the Dadan archaeological site, which contributed to developing and enriching the Arabic language.(SPA)
AlUla includes the ancient Nabataean city of Hegra or Al-Hijr, registered as the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Kingdom, and the Dadan archaeological site, which contributed to developing and enriching the Arabic language.(SPA)
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AlUla's Dream Comes True as Top Global Tourist Destination

AlUla includes the ancient Nabataean city of Hegra or Al-Hijr, registered as the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Kingdom, and the Dadan archaeological site, which contributed to developing and enriching the Arabic language.(SPA)
AlUla includes the ancient Nabataean city of Hegra or Al-Hijr, registered as the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Kingdom, and the Dadan archaeological site, which contributed to developing and enriching the Arabic language.(SPA)

The people of AlUla Governorate, located in the northwest of the Kingdom, have long dreamt of seeing the region as a global tourist hub for worldwide visitors. This dream came true thanks to the support provided by the wise leadership, transforming AlUla into one of the most prominent and important global tourism destinations, as it has witnessed a remarkable tourism boom, according to recent statistics.
The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) aims to raise the number of tourists to 2 million visitors by 2035, SPA said.
Hundreds of young men and women work in various fields to promote tourism in this governorate, which still preserves its antiquities and history dating back thousands of years.
It offers outstanding archaeological sites and unique tourist attractions, being one of the largest living museums in the world due to its antiquities, cemeteries, sculptures, and rock formations. It also includes the ancient Nabataean city of Hegra or Al-Hijr, registered as the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Kingdom, and the Dadan archaeological site, which contributed to developing and enriching the Arabic language.
The new identity of the 93rd National Day this year, under the slogan "We Dream, and We Achieve," was inspired by Saudi projects that were accomplished and turned from a dream into a reality, including AlUla projects empowered by the efforts of the RCU that aim to strengthen its position as one of the global archaeological, cultural, and natural tourist destinations.
The "AlUla Vision," launched by the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman earlier, reflects AlUla's historical status embodied through the essential stages of achieving AlUla's vision, including the "Journey Through Time" plan.
This plan also aims to preserve AlUla as a unique natural and cultural environment that can develop cultural heritage for the world and achieve the goals of the Kingdom's Vision 2030. Upon its completion, it will realize an economic return by attracting more tourists and providing multiple job opportunities for local community members, in addition to contributing to the Kingdom's GDP.



King Charles Wears Kilt in Tartan Named after Him in New Photo

This handout photograph released by Buckingham Palace on January 25, 2025, shows Britain's King Charles III, posing for a photograph in the library at Balmoral, Scotland in Autumn 2024. (Photo by Millie Pilkington / Buckingham Palace / AFP)
This handout photograph released by Buckingham Palace on January 25, 2025, shows Britain's King Charles III, posing for a photograph in the library at Balmoral, Scotland in Autumn 2024. (Photo by Millie Pilkington / Buckingham Palace / AFP)
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King Charles Wears Kilt in Tartan Named after Him in New Photo

This handout photograph released by Buckingham Palace on January 25, 2025, shows Britain's King Charles III, posing for a photograph in the library at Balmoral, Scotland in Autumn 2024. (Photo by Millie Pilkington / Buckingham Palace / AFP)
This handout photograph released by Buckingham Palace on January 25, 2025, shows Britain's King Charles III, posing for a photograph in the library at Balmoral, Scotland in Autumn 2024. (Photo by Millie Pilkington / Buckingham Palace / AFP)

Buckingham Palace published a new photograph of King Charles wearing a kilt made of a tartan named in his honor to mark the birthday of Scotland’s national poet Robert Burns on Saturday.

Burn’s Night is an annual celebration of the poet, who was born in 1759 and died in 1796.

In the photograph, taken last autumn, the 76-year-old king appears standing in the library at Balmoral Castle, the royal family's summer retreat in the Scottish Highlands.

The monarch is seen wearing a kilt in the King Charles III tartan, which was designed by the Scottish Tartans Authority in May 2023, and a tie in matching colors.

The palace revealed in February 2024 that Charles, who became king in 2022, had been diagnosed with an unspecified form of cancer detected in tests after a corrective procedure for an enlarged prostate.

His treatment has been progressing well and would continue this year, a palace source said late last year.