عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Varieties

Saudi Arabia Breathes Life into Newcastle Tourism

Newcastle: The City of Bridges (Shutterstock)
Newcastle: The City of Bridges (Shutterstock)
TT
TT

Saudi Arabia Breathes Life into Newcastle Tourism

Newcastle: The City of Bridges (Shutterstock)
Newcastle: The City of Bridges (Shutterstock)

In a monumental occurrence within the sports world, the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) finalized its acquisition of Newcastle Football Club on October 7, 2021, for an astounding £240 million.

 

Saudi Arabia saw in this move a tremendous opportunity to restore the glory of one of England’s most prestigious clubs, which clinched the English Premier League title in seasons spanning from 1904 to 1909 and last claimed it in 1926.

 

The club has also lifted the FA Cup on six occasions but has failed to secure any official championships since their FA Cup triumph in 1955.

 

Two years after the club’s ownership transferred to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the renowned “Black and White Army,” also known as the Magpies, is reclaiming its glory. This week, they reached the cup final for the first time in 47 years, securing a spot in the Champions League.

 

With hopes set high, the city of Newcastle, along with its residents, anticipates a promising future encompassing sports, economic growth, and tourism.

 

Saudi Arabia's involvement has played a pivotal role in breathing new life into this northeastern English city, propelling it towards the status of an appealing destination for tourists hailing from the Gulf nations and beyond.

 

Presently, diligent endeavors are in progress to establish state-of-the-art training facilities, accompanied by significant investments in the construction of opulent hotels.

 

This ambitious development plan not only aims to elevate the city’s allure but also holds the potential to generate a multitude of employment opportunities for both local inhabitants and surrounding communities.

 

Newcastle, often hailed as the “City of Bridges,” owes its title to an impressive assortment of seven bridges, each boasting a distinctive and diverse design. Among these architectural marvels, the Tyne Bridge claims the status of an iconic landmark.

 

Moreover, Newcastle is renowned for its vibrant nightlife, rivaling that of London. It is also celebrated as a city with prestigious universities, particularly in the field of medicine. Institutions such as Newcastle University and Northumbria University attract students from all corners of the globe, including Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries.

 

The people of Newcastle are widely known for their remarkable hospitality but speak a dialect that can be quite challenging even for native English speakers, as it incorporates terms not found in the English dictionary.

 

Newcastle also became renowned for its coal trade, serving as a prominent industrial hub for coal mining and exporting it to London and neighboring cities. Additionally, the city played a pioneering role in shipbuilding, engineering, weapon manufacturing, and even witnessed the birth of railways.

 

Most Viewed

 
 
Varieties

Greece's 'Instagram Island' Santorini nears Saturation Point

Tourists queue as they wait to take a picture from one of the balconies. Aris Oikonomou / AFP
Tourists queue as they wait to take a picture from one of the balconies. Aris Oikonomou / AFP
TT
TT

Greece's 'Instagram Island' Santorini nears Saturation Point

Tourists queue as they wait to take a picture from one of the balconies. Aris Oikonomou / AFP
Tourists queue as they wait to take a picture from one of the balconies. Aris Oikonomou / AFP

One of the most enduring images of Greece's summer travel brand is the world-famous sunset on Santorini Island, framed by sea-blue church domes on a jagged cliff high above a volcanic caldera.
This scene has inspired millions of fridge magnets, posters, and souvenirs -- and now the queue to reach the viewing spot in the clifftop village of Oia can take more than 20 minutes, said AFP.
Santorini is a key stopover of the Greek cruise experience. But with parts of the island nearing saturation, officials are considering restrictions.
Of the record 32.7 million people who visited Greece last year, around 3.4 million, or one in 10, went to the island of just 15,500 residents.
"We need to set limits if we don't want to sink under overtourism," Santorini mayor Nikos Zorzos told AFP.
"There must not be a single extra bed... whether in the large hotels or Airbnb rentals."
As the sun set behind the horizon in Oia, thousands raised their phones to the sky to capture the moment, followed by scattered applause.
For canny entrepreneurs, the Cycladic island's famous sunset can be a cash cow.
One company advertised more than 50 "flying dresses", which have long flowing trains, for up to 370 euros ($401), on posters around Oia for anyone who wishes to "feel like a Greek goddess" or spruce up selfies.
'Respect Oia'
But elsewhere in Oia's narrow streets, residents have put up signs urging visitors to respect their home.
"RESPECT... It's your holiday... but it's our home," read a purple sign from the Save Oia group.
Shaped by a volcanic eruption 3,600 years ago, Santorini's landscape is "unique", the mayor said, and "should not be harmed by new infrastructure".
Around a fifth of the island is currently occupied by buildings.
At the edge of the cliff, a myriad of swimming pools and jacuzzis highlight Santorini is also a pricey destination.
In 2023, 800 cruise ships brought some 1.3 million passengers, according to the Hellenic Ports Association.
Cruise ships "do a lot of harm to the island", said Chantal Metakides, a Belgian resident of Santorini for 26 years.
"When there are eight or nine ships pumping out smoke, you can see the layer of pollution in the caldera," she said.
Cruise ship limits
In June, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis floated the possibility of capping cruise ship arrivals to Greece's most popular islands.
"I think we'll do it next year," he told Bloomberg, noting that Santorini and tourist magnet Mykonos "are clearly suffering".
"There are people spending a lot of money to be on Santorini and they don’t want the island to be swamped," said the pro-business conservative leader, who was re-elected to a second four-year term last year.
In an AFP interview, Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni echoed this sentiment and said: "We must set quotas because it's impossible for an island such as Santorini... to have five cruise ships arriving at the same time."
Local officials have set a limit of 8,000 cruise boat passengers per day from next year.
But not all local operators agree.
Antonis Pagonis, head of Santorini's hoteliers association, believes better visitor flow management is part of the solution.
"It is not possible to have (on) a Monday, for example, 20 to 25,000 guests from the cruise ships, and the next day zero," he said.
Pagonis also argued that most of the congestion only affects parts of the island like the capital, Fira.
In the south of the island, the volcanic sand beaches are less crowded, even though it is high season in July.
'I'm in Türkiye
The modern tourism industry has also changed visitor behavior.
"I listened (to) people making a FaceTime call with the family, saying 'I'm in Türkiye," smiled tourist guide Kostas Sakavaras.
"They think that the church over there is a mosque because yesterday they were in Türkiye."
The veteran guide said the average tourist coming to the island has changed.
"Instagram has defined the way people choose the places to visit," he said, explaining everybody wants the perfect Instagram photo to confirm their expectations.