LONDON – Hungarian ultra-low-cost carrier Wizz Air has announced the launch of 20 new routes to Saudi Arabia. The new routes will service Saudi destinations Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dammam, with over one million low fare seats on offer.

The newly proposed routes will connect Bucharest, Budapest, Catania, Larnaca, Milan, Naples, Rome, Sofia, Tirana, Venice and Vienna to Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dammam in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia & Vision 2030

Today’s move significantly strengthens Wizz Air’s connectivity between Europe and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and raises the airline’s profile in the growing Saudi Arabian tourism sector.

Wizz Air have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Investment for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The MoU is a Ministry of Tourism initiative, aimed to enhance the development of the Saudi Tourism Sector. 

This represents an important contribution to the Vision 2030 programme to triple the country’s passenger traffic by 2030. Taken alone, the Wizz Air route expansion will bring over one million additional travellers to Saudi Arabia next year.

Flight schedules

Wizz Air advise that ticket sales are now open for all of the new routes, with prices starting from 54.99EUR

Wizz Air management statements

Speaking on the significance of the new connectivity to both Saudi Arabia and the European airline, Jozsef Varadi, CEO of Wizz Air, said: 

“Saudi Arabia is one of the most exciting countries in the world for aviation portraying an eclectic mix of travel opportunities with unmissable destinations, countless exciting attractions, and a thriving cultural scene.”

“Today’s announcement follows the Memorandum of Understanding we recently signed with the government enabling us to contribute to Saudi tourism’s growth and its entire ecosystem.”

“Not only does Wizz Air offer incredibly low fares to travellers given our operational efficiency, but we also fly one the youngest, most modern, and sustainable fleet of aircraft in the world.”

“I see the Kingdom as a long-term strategic market for Wizz Air where we will continue to innovate and carry the flag of low cost flying for the benefit of Saudi residents and visitors as well as the country’s diversifying economy.”

Saudi Arabia statements

Fahd Hamidaddin, CEO and Member of the Board at Saudi Tourism Authority, referred to the sheer size of the flight scheduling, saying: “Today’s announcement of 20 new routes to Saudi is one of the largest such announcements anywhere in the world.”

“It is a real first for Wizz Air and for Saudi, and opens a new and affordable gateway for visitors from Europe that will allow everyone to come and explore the world’s most exciting new destination. This is already an exceptional partnership and today is just the start.”

Khalil Lamrabet, CEO of The Air Connectivity Program, said: “We are pleased to have been able to work with Wizz Air to grow its network to Saudi Arabia; the announced routes are a testament to the strong traffic potential that the Kingdom has to offer.”

Mohammed Ahmed Almowkley, CEO of Matarat, said:

“We at Matarat are working with our partners and airline companies to provide an attractive environment at Saudi airports for airlines and passengers to offer better choices with high-quality services, and this work is an extension to the previous announcement with Wizz Air to operate direct flights from King Fahd International Airport to three diverse international destinations” 

Summary

Today’s mass route announcement is certainly a big leap for both Wizz Air and for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, providing a massive boost to their Vision 2030 tourism programme.