AlHijjah 6, 1433, Oct 22, 2012, SPA -- Saudi Arabia is a destination for a wide portion of GCC tourists as it received in 2011 more than five million touristy flights from GCC member states, including 2 million flights taking place in the third quarter of the same year, official figures released today said. A report titled Touristy Statistics for 2011, issued by Touristy Information and Research Center, an affiliate of the Saudi Tourism and Antiquities Authority, said Kuwait ranked first in terms of number of GCC touristy flights, totaling 2.6 million at a rate of 14.7 percent, followed by UAE with a total number of 1.5 million and a rate of 8.8. percent, Bahrain with 1.2. million flights, and Qatar 1.1 million flights. The report said purpose of most of the visits to the Kingdom were to visit relatives and friends, then for business and conferences, spending vacations and entertainment. Qataris ranked first in terms of coming for shopping, the report added. Visitors to Saudi Arabia from GCC countries used to stay an average of four days five nights at hotels and private homes, it concluded.
