A $294 million tourism project has been planned for the Yanbu seafront in Saudi Arabia. Five projects have been presented to the government for development of the seafront to draw tourists and local visitors along the 11- kilometer seafront. The Kingdom has recently decided to expand its tourism market to diversify its economy. Among the developments planned for Yanbu will be a number of green areas, beaches, amusement parks, hotels and restaurants. The basic infrastructure designs for five projects to develop the Yanbu seafront in Saudi Arabia have been completed, according to Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu. The projects, worth more than SR1.1 billion ($294 million), are set to be developed along the 11km seafront as part of the country's wider strategy to expand its tourism market and diversify its economy. Among the developments will be a number of green areas, beaches, amusement parks, hotels, restaurants, car parks and pavements, as well as a long Corniche. A Royal Commission spokesperson said: “The projects will contribute to the creation of a strong base for tourism in the region and will diversify the economic base of the city.” Construction works for the projects, which is aimed to attract more visitors, will include installation of a sewage system, water tanks, an electricity network and the lighting of roads in 13 separate areas. Other tourism projects launched this year include a number of high profile hotel developments, as well as the expansion of Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz Airport in Madina. The latter project is hoped to increase the airport's passenger-handling capacity from 3.5 million people per year to 14 million.
