The tourism and hospitality sector in Saudi Arabia showed strong operational dynamism and institutional expansion in the first quarter of 2026, according to official data from Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Statistics. Despite the freedom demonstrated in daily price levels and occupancy rates, the sector's regulatory environment saw extraordinary growth in licenses and an influx of both national and expatriate workers.
Indicators confirmed an increase in the total number of licensed tourism hospitality facilities in the Kingdom during Q1 2026 by 22.7 percent, reaching 6,122 facilities compared to 4,988 in the same quarter of 2025. Serviced apartments and other hospitality facilities accounted for the largest share, at 51.6 percent of the total, with 3,159, while the number of licensed hotels reached 2,963.
This facility expansion was paralleled by an increase in the number of establishments; the number of tourism establishments with employees in the Kingdom reached approximately 177,031 during Q1 2026, marking a 9.0 percent growth compared to the corresponding quarter of last year, which then recorded 162,473 establishments.
The total number of people employed in tourism activities saw a 6.5 percent year-on-year jump, increasing the sector's workforce to 1,047,313 employees compared to 983,253 in the same period of 2025.
According to the data, the number of Saudi employees in tourism activities reached 250,094, representing 23.9 percent of the total workforce, while non-Saudis numbered 797,219.
Conversely, the room occupancy rate in hotels decreased to 60.8 percent during Q1 2026, a decline of 2.2 percentage points compared to the same quarter of 2025, which recorded 63.0 percent.
In contrast, the serviced apartments and other hospitality facilities sector showed positive growth; its occupancy rate increased by 1.0 percent to reach 51.6 percent compared to 50.7 percent in the corresponding quarter in 2025.
At the price level, the average daily rate for a hotel room recorded an 11.4 percent decrease, reaching 423 Saudi Riyals compared to 477 Riyals in Q1 2025. The average daily rate in the serviced apartments and other hospitality facilities sector also saw a slight decrease of 1.2 percent, stabilizing at 206 Saudi Riyals compared to 209 Riyals.
Despite fluctuations in prices and occupancy, the Authority's statistics revealed a tangible improvement in the average length of guest stay:
In Hotels: The average length of stay increased by 2.0 percent, reaching 4.2 nights during Q1 2026 compared to 4.1 last year.
In Serviced Apartments: The length of stay increased by 1.2 percent, reaching 2.2 nights compared to 2.1 in the same quarter of 2025.
These aggregated data, which were compiled by the General Authority for Statistics using administrative records and secondary data, reflect an important phase of structural transformation in the Kingdom's tourism sector as it strives for operational solvency and relies on long-term, quality investments.
