RIYADH: More than 5,000 hotel rooms are expected to be completed in AlUla by 2035, the CEO of the Royal Commission for AlUla told Asharq Business.

CEO Amr AlMadani said 200 of these are currently under construction and up to 1,000 units will be ready by the end of 2023.

He said that the “Journey Through Time” project aims to attract tourists from all over the world to the site which will form a cornerstone of the Kingdom’s international tourism push.

Efforts are now underway to protect the precious habitat in the northwest of the Kingdom.

“60 percent of the nine square kilometers heritage oasis in AlUla has receded, and we will find all ways to revive it based on the concepts of the Saudi Green Initiative,” said AlMadani.

He said that transportation within the region will be sustainable and will include a special train and tram project.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had launched the design vision for “journey through time” scheme, which aims, upon completion in 2035, to provide 38,000 new job opportunities, in addition to contributing SR120 billion ($32 billion) to the Kingdom’s GDP.