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How Does Saudi Arabia's New HNW Population Travel?
For decades, the archetype of Saudi luxury travel was the languid Mediterranean summer: a superyacht moored off the Riviera, an entourage, and sunset drinks to round it off. That image is rapidly fading. A new generation of Saudi high-net-worth individuals, shaped by Vision 2030's culture of ambition and achievement, is choosing snow-capped peaks over sunlit decks, and skill over spectacle.
A new generation of Saudi high-net-worth individuals is exploring winter holidays and outdoor activities.
The New Demographic
According to Knight Frank's Middle East Wealth Report (2024), more than 60% of Saudi Arabia's HNWI population is now under the age of 45 — a demographic inversion that is reshaping demand across the luxury sector. These younger wealth-holders consistently rank "active, health-focused, and skill-building experiences" above traditional luxury shopping when asked about travel priorities.
There is a 180% surge in demand for sports-integrated luxury travel.
This shift is measurable in spending, too. Research from Alvarez & Marsal and Redseer's Middle East Consumer Insights shows outbound experiential travel spend among Saudi travellers growing at a 14.2% CAGR (compound annual growth rate), with HNW respondents reporting a 180% surge in demand for sports-integrated luxury travel — cycling, high-altitude sport and aviation — compared with pre-2022 levels.
Saudi Arabia's HNW travellers now prioritise active and health-focused experiences.
Data from Visa’s global outbound studies further highlights this trajectory, consistently ranking Saudi Arabian travelers as the top global spenders per trip—outpacing markets like the US, China, and Australia. Visa’s recent Travel Pulse research underscores a structural shift toward experiential cross-border spending, with outbound leisure accounting for nearly half (48%) of total cross-border card volume.
Commenting on the evolving dynamics of Saudi outbound travellers, Ali Bailoun, Visa’s Regional General Manager for Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman, noted: "Summer and seasonal travel among Saudi cardholders is shifting decisively toward experiential and curated family-focused activities, where value is measured by shared experiences, entertainment, and exclusive destination access."
Summer and seasonal travel among Saudi cardholders is shifting decisively toward experiential and curated family-focused activities.
The Mastercard Economics Institute also reports that Saudi Arabia is leading the GCC region in per-trip spend on "exclusive experiential access", which includes private tours, masterclasses and elite sports coaching, with this category of spending rising 22% faster than luxury retail purchases among high-tier cardholders.
The (Surprising) Destination of Choice
The Alps have become the ideal choice for these growing interests. Journalist Simon Mills observed in Airmail (January 2025) that the French Alpine resorts once favoured by Russian oligarchs are now seeing increased interest from Gulf visitors. Private heli-skiing, glacier training alongside Olympic athletes, high-altitude golf at Crans-Montana, and behind-the-scenes access to watchmaking ateliers in the Val de Travers are no longer niche indulgences; they are the new benchmarks of prestige.
Alpine experiences such as high-altitude golf are no longer niche indulges, they're the new benchmarks of prestige.
What separates a good trip from an extraordinary one at this level is not access alone, but flawless execution, personalised service, and uncompromising discretion — and this is precisely where Revamont's model comes into its own. On one journey, a guest stepped into a private helicopter for a drop onto the pristine powder of the Verwall range in Lech — Austria's only heli-skiing terrain, far removed from the crowds — before descending the legendary Langer Zug corridor, an experience that would be near-impossible to arrange without an on-ground Experience Host managing permits, weather windows and pilot logistics.
Discerning travellers are looking for adventure, culture, well-being and culinary experiences woven into one holistic travel itinerary.
The same discretion extends to evenings, where itineraries have unfolded into unscripted culinary moments, such as private dinners inside exclusive 15th-century estates with no set menu, or private tastings of local ingredients or dishes passed down generations.
Cultural access, too, has been woven seamlessly into these journeys — from a private introduction to master watchmaker Philippe Dufour at his single-bench workshop in Geneva, to a horse-drawn carriage ride through the car-free Val Fex, tracing the very paths once painted by Giovanni Segantini. And after days of high-altitude performance, guests have found intentional recovery built into the itinerary, whether through four-hour botanical treatments using wild Edelweiss extracts at the Bürgenstock Alpine Spa or quiet forest bathing above Lake Lucerne.
The key to a seamless experience is having an on-the-ground Experience Host who anticipates a guest's every need and possesses a native's knowledge of the most authentic local experiences.
In each instance, the thread connecting adrenaline, gastronomy, heritage and wellness is the same: a dedicated Experience Host who anticipates every transition so the guest never has to. Revamont's cultural sensitivity and knowledge of Halal requirements means that guests are able to appreciate the nuances of a different culture without compromising their own core calues.
For Saudi Arabia's next-generation HNWIs, luxury is no longer about passive comfort — it's about performance, craft and rare access, delivered with total ease.
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