RIYADH — Saudi Arabia's licensed tourism hospitality facilities increased 22.7 percent year-on-year to 6,122 in the first quarter of 2026, according to the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT). Based on GASTAT's Tourism Establishments Statistics report for the first quarter of 2026, the increase was driven by 3,159 serviced apartments and other hospitality facilities, accounting for 51.6 percent of the total, while 2,963 hotels represented the remaining 48.4 percent. **media[2732483]** The number of tourism establishments with employees also rose 9 percent year-on-year to approximately 177,031, up from 162,473 in the first quarter of 2025. Employment across tourism activities reached 1,047,313, an increase of 6.5 percent from 983,253 a year earlier. Saudi nationals accounted for 250,094 employees, representing 23.9 percent of the workforce, while 797,219 non-Saudis made up the remaining 76.1 percent. Hotel room occupancy stood at 60.8 percent during the quarter, down 2.1 percentage points from 63.0 percent in the corresponding period of 2025. **media[2732493]** In contrast, occupancy at serviced apartments and other hospitality facilities rose to 51.6 percent, up 1.0 percentage point from 50.7 percent a year earlier. The average hotel stay increased to 4.2 nights, up 2 percent from 4.1 nights a year earlier, while the average stay in serviced apartments and other hospitality facilities rose to 2.2 nights, a 1.2 percent increase from 2.1 nights.
