The Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia has announced plans for Amaala – an uber-luxury destination on the north-west coast of Saudi Arabia.
Amaala will be an ultra-luxury resort with a focus on wellness, healthy living, and meditation.
Initial funding for the project will be provided by PIF. Partnership and investment packages will be available for the private sector.
PIF has also announced the appointment of veteran luxury hospitality and development executive Nicholas Naples as Chief Executive Officer of Amaala. He will lead development and operations for the destination.
“Transformational luxury experiences”
Naples said: “Amaala will awaken the world’s imagination by rephrasing the current concept of the luxury tourism experience, especially in terms of integrative wellness, specialty treatments and related recreational offerings. Our concept will provide a rich service offering that exceeds customers’ expectations by providing a comprehensive suite of services not commonly found in one location that is unique by all measures. The Amaala experience will be enhanced by its setting, spread across beautiful, untouched natural sites.
“Amaala represents a unique and transformational luxury experience where full-fledged wellness tourism is integrated alongside a curated mix of arts, culture, and sports offerings that are individually tailored for the ultra-luxury lifestyle, including the availability of a fashion scene, healthy-living services, and year-round sea expeditions.”
The resort will feature hotels and private villas. It will also contain a retail village and an academy of the arts.
There will also be a calendar of cultural events, artistic performances and related conferences. This will encourage international visitation to the region. The resort will be set against a backdrop of mountainous landscapes and coral reefs.
Giga-projects
At blooloopLIVE 2018, PwC’s Philip Shepherd noted that Saudi was a destination to watch. There are 4 “giga projects” currently under construction in Saudi: Qiddiya, Al-Ula, Neom and the Red Sea Project.
Amaala – with the other giga-projects – will support the diversification of Saudi Arabia’s leisure and tourism industry.
Luxury experiences are increasingly a trend in the attractions industry, as consumers’ demand for high end, personalised experiences becomes greater.
