Qiddiya

Qiddiya City is a planned entertainment and tourism destination being developed near Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, along the Tuwaiq Escarpment. The project was announced in April 2017 as part of Saudi Vision 2030, the national economic and social diversification program intended to reduce the Kingdom's dependence on oil, expand domestic and international tourism, and increase spending on leisure, culture, sports, and entertainment inside Saudi Arabia. The development is backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and is managed through Qiddiya Investment Company, a private Saudi company responsible for developing the city's projects and properties. Rather than being a conventional single-purpose resort, Qiddiya City has been planned as a broad destination combining theme parks, water-based attractions, sports venues, cultural facilities, hospitality, residential districts, retail, and transport infrastructure. Its intended audience includes Saudi residents, regional visitors, international tourists, sports fans, families, and entertainment consumers. The project entered construction in early 2019. Early planning projections anticipated as many as 17 million annual visitors by 2030 and approximately 325,000 jobs, although development schedules and delivery dates have changed as the program has expanded. The first phase, originally associated with an earlier completion target, was subsequently pushed into the mid-2020s. The wider city remains a long-term, multi-stage development rather than a completed urban settlement. Named attractions announced for Qiddiya include Six Flags Qiddiya City, Aquarabia, a purpose-built Formula One circuit, and a planned Dragon Ball theme park described as the first of its kind. These assets are intended to establish Qiddiya as a regional hub for branded entertainment, adventure, live events, motorsport, and sports tourism. The project also forms part of a wider transformation of the Riyadh region, with proposed transport connections linking Qiddiya to King Salman International Airport and Riyadh's King Abdullah Financial District. Qiddiya has attracted substantial international attention because of its scale and because it is associated with Saudi Arabia's broader investment in sports and entertainment. Supporters present it as an economic diversification and quality-of-life initiative that will create jobs, develop new visitor infrastructure, and expand cultural and recreational opportunities. Critics, including human-rights organizations, have described some of the Kingdom's high-profile sports and entertainment investments as possible sportswashing, arguing that international events and attractions can divert attention from restrictions and alleged abuses affecting human rights, including the rights of LGBT people. Labor, environmental, and construction-safety issues have also been raised. UK Export Finance classified the project as Category A under its social and environmental risk framework in 2024, reflecting the potential for significant adverse impacts during construction and operation. Human Rights Watch has discussed risks affecting migrant workers on Saudi megaprojects, including concerns related to the kafala system, wage theft, and heat exposure. The Business & Human Rights Resource Centre has documented reported safety concerns at Qiddiya construction sites, including vehicle strikes, falls from height, and exposure to extreme heat. These criticisms remain an important part of the project's public profile. The first operational asset identified in the supplied reference material was Six Flags Qiddiya City, which opened on 31 December 2025. Other attractions and infrastructure continue to form part of the city's planned build-out. Qiddiya should therefore be understood as both a destination brand and a continuing urban-development program, with its ultimate scale, schedule, visitor performance, and social and environmental effects dependent on future phases of construction and oper…

Qiddiya City emerged from Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 program, which seeks to diversify the national economy, develop non-oil industries, increase tourism, and provide more domestic opportunities for entertainment and leisure. The project was announced in April 2017 as a major destination near Riyadh, positioned along the Tuwaiq Escarpment in Riyadh Province. It was conceived as a large integrated development rather than a standalone amusement park, with planned components spanning theme parks, water attractions, sports, motorsport, culture, hospitality, retail, housing, and supporting infrastructure. The Public Investment Fund became the principal financial backer and established Qiddiya Investment Company to manage development of the city's projects and properties. Early descriptions presented Qiddiya as a potentially transformative regional destination, with projections of up to 17 million visitors a year by 2030 and roughly 325,000 jobs. These figures were planning expectations rather than completed operating results. The program's first phase was initially associated with an earlier delivery schedule, but the timetable later moved into the mid-2020s as the scope and complexity of the development evolved. Physical construction began in early 2019. Subsequent plans identified several major anchor attractions. Six Flags Qiddiya City was designed as a large branded theme park. Aquarabia was planned as a major waterpark. A dedicated Formula One circuit was proposed for motorsport and major-event use, while a Dragon Ball theme park was announced as a distinctive intellectual-property-based attraction described as the first of its kind globally. Together, these projects were intended to give Qiddiya a mix of family entertainment, adventure, sports, and international event programming. The project also developed an infrastructure dimension. Proposed transport plans include a Qiddiya high-speed rail service with stations at King Salman International Airport, King Abdullah Financial District, and Qiddiya City. A later proposal for Riyadh Metro Line 7 envisioned a connection from the northwestern Diriyah Governorate toward Qiddiya. These plans illustrate the project's intended relationship with the wider Riyadh metropolitan area and its role in regional tourism and urban expansion. Qiddiya's public reception has been mixed. Government and project advocates describe it as a vehicle for job creation, economic diversification, tourism growth, and improved recreational provision. International observers and human-rights organizations have questioned whether Saudi Arabia's investment in high-profile sports and entertainment can function as sportswashing, particularly in light of criticism concerning the country's human-rights record and the treatment of LGBT people. Labor and environmental impacts have become another major area of scrutiny. UK Export Finance's 2024 Category A classification indicated that the project could generate significant adverse social and environmental effects. Human Rights Watch has identified risks for migrant workers on Saudi megaprojects, including issues associated with the kafala labor system, wage theft, and extreme heat. The Business & Human Rights Resource Centre has separately recorded reported construction-safety concerns connected with Qiddiya sites, including vehicle incidents, falls from heights, and heat exposure. These reports do not establish a final assessment of the project's overall performance, but they are central to the controversy surrounding its construction. According to the supplied reference material, Six Flags Qiddiya City opened on 31 December 2025 as the first operational component of the wider development. Qiddiya City therefore remains an active, phased megaproject whose final urban form, attraction portfolio, transport links, visitor numbers, and social and environmental record will depend on subsequent construction and operation.

• 2025

  Six Flags Qiddiya City opens

  [1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  Six Flags Qiddiya City opened on 31 December 2025 as the first operational asset of the wider development.

• 2025

  Qiddiya rail connections announced

  [1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  Plans were announced for high-speed rail linking Qiddiya with King Salman International Airport and central Riyadh, alongside a proposed Riyadh Metro Line 7 extension.

• 2024

  Category A social and environmental classification

  [1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  UK Export Finance classified the project as Category A because of the potential scale of its environmental and social impacts.

• 2019

  Construction begins

  [1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  Construction started on the planned city and its initial destination infrastructure.

• 2017

  Qiddiya announced

  [1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  Saudi Arabia announced Qiddiya as a Vision 2030 project focused on entertainment, sport, culture, tourism, and economic diversification near Riyadh.

A Saudi Vision 2030 destination designed to combine large-scale entertainment, sports, culture, tourism, and urban development in a single integrated city near Riyadh.

• Integrated entertainment and tourism destination · 2017

  Qiddiya City

  The umbrella destination and planned urban development near Riyadh. Qiddiya City is intended to combine entertainment, sports, cultural attractions, hospitality, retail, residences, and transport infrastructure in a single visitor-oriented development connected to the wider Riyadh region.

• Theme park · 2025

  Six Flags Qiddiya City

  A branded Six Flags theme park planned as one of Qiddiya City's principal family-entertainment anchors. Its role is to provide rides, attractions, and destination programming within the larger Qiddiya development. According to the supplied reference material, it opened on 31 December 2025 and became the first operational Qiddiya City asset.

• Water park

  Aquarabia

  A planned waterpark intended to broaden Qiddiya's family, leisure, and adventure offering. Aquarabia is positioned as a major attraction within the destination rather than as a standalone local facility, complementing the theme-park and sports components of Qiddiya City.

• Motorsport facility

  Qiddiya Formula One circuit

  A proposed purpose-built circuit intended to support Formula One and other motorsport or major sporting events. The circuit is part of Qiddiya's strategy to combine sports tourism, live events, and entertainment within the same destination.

• Theme park

  Dragon Ball theme park

  A planned theme park based on the Dragon Ball entertainment franchise. The attraction has been presented as the first Dragon Ball theme park worldwide and is intended to add a globally recognizable intellectual-property experience to Qiddiya City's visitor portfolio.

• 2024

  Labor, environmental, and construction-safety concerns

  Concerns have been raised about the social and environmental effects of construction, migrant-worker conditions, wage theft, heat stress, and reported site-safety incidents. UK Export Finance's Category A classification reflected the potential significance of these risks, while human-rights and business-and-human-rights organizations reported broader concerns affecting Saudi megaproject workers.

  Source

• 2017

  Sportswashing and human-rights criticism

  International observers and human-rights organizations have criticized Qiddiya and related Saudi entertainment and sports investments as possible sportswashing, arguing that high-profile attractions may improve the Kingdom's international image while diverting attention from concerns including treatment of LGBT people.

  Source

Read more

• 2025

  Open Six Flags Qiddiya CityProduct launch

  Background

  Qiddiya required an initial operating attraction to begin establishing the wider destination as a visitor and entertainment hub.

  Action taken

  Six Flags Qiddiya City opened on 31 December 2025 according to the supplied reference material.

  Aftermath

  The theme park became the first operational asset of Qiddiya City, while other attractions and infrastructure remained in development.

  Source

• 2019

  Begin phased constructionStrategy

  Background

  The planned destination required extensive construction of attractions, venues, utilities, districts, and transport links.

  Action taken

  Construction began in early 2019 under Qiddiya Investment Company.

  Aftermath

  The project moved from announcement and planning into a multi-year development phase, with schedules later extending into the mid-2020s.

  Source

• 2017

  Create an integrated entertainment and tourism cityStrategy

  Background

  Saudi Vision 2030 called for economic diversification, stronger tourism, and greater domestic access to entertainment and cultural activities.

  Action taken

  Saudi Arabia announced Qiddiya as a large destination combining theme parks, sports, culture, hospitality, and urban development near Riyadh.

  Aftermath

  The project became one of the Kingdom's major Vision 2030 megaprojects and attracted plans for multiple international-scale attractions.

  Source

• 2025

  Six Flags Qiddiya City opens[1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  Product launch

  Six Flags Qiddiya City opened on 31 December 2025, becoming the first operational asset of the wider Qiddiya City development according to the supplied reference material.

• 2025

  Plans announced for Qiddiya High Speed Railway[1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The Royal Commission for Riyadh City announced plans for a high-speed railway connecting King Salman International Airport, King Abdullah Financial District, and Qiddiya City.

• 2025

  Plans announced for Riyadh Metro Line 7 extension to Qiddiya[1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Plans were announced for a future Riyadh Metro Line 7 connection extending toward Qiddiya City, with initial implementation planned for 2026.

• 2019

  Construction begins at Qiddiya[1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Construction of the planned Qiddiya City development began in early 2019, initiating work on a multi-stage destination program.

• 2017

  Qiddiya project announced as part of Saudi Vision 2030[1]Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Saudi Arabia announced Qiddiya as a major entertainment, sports, cultural, and tourism development near Riyadh intended to support economic diversification and domestic tourism.

1. 1Qiddiya Cityen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Qiddiya official websiteqiddiya.com
3. 3Qiddiya appoints Philippe Gas as new CEOargaam.com
4. 4Qiddiya partners with KAUST to support the Kingdom’s future workforcesaudigazette.com.sa