Saudi Arabia to Transform Desert into a Megacity Snow Ski Resort

VIVA – Saudi Arabia becomes one of the countries that is visited by many people to business or performing the Hajj. Saudi Arabia is the largest oil producer and exporter in the world, but the government doesn’t want to depend on petroleum products anymore. Therefore, this country started a tourist destination development program that facilitates tourist access to travel.

Not only known as a hot desert country, but Saudi Arabia also plans to become a leading winter sports center, with the name Trojena. This tourism looks like a ski resort worth £400bn or around IDR 6 billion.

Saudi Arabia is so serious about the Trojena project that it has committed to hosting the 2029 Asian Winter Games. The Kingdom will be the first in western Asia to ever host the games. Trojena will have runs of varying difficulty covering the mountain peaks of Tabuk in north-western Saudi Arabia.

Some of those mountains are up to 2,600 meters above sea level. The ski field will form part of a massive project called NEOM, a futuristic city that will stretch across the desert, mountains, and to the Red Sea.

When the project is completed, the Trojena resort is believed to be able to compete with places like Val d'Isere, Verbier, and Zermatt as one of the world's top ski resorts. 

Efforts have already begun to transform the barren area into a futuristic resort. The project is part of several futuristic Neom projects that will also build skyscrapers and a car-free zone.

The project is built with 100 percent renewable energy and will be home to 9 million people. In addition, The Line will have high-speed trains that travel from end to end in just 20 minutes.

The destination will house six special development districts that blend with architectural innovation and virtual engineering. "All of this is built to create a tourist destination like no other in the world," NEOM said.

Trojena will not only be an attractive tourist spot to visit but will also be a place to live and work that will be in high demand. The location will be equipped with artificial freshwater lakes, nature reserves, and outdoor ski slopes. The area is one of the few in Saudi Arabia that has snow.

However, questions have been raised as to whether there will be enough natural snow to support winter sports activities. According to Neom's Managing Director, Jan Paterson, the snow is artificial snow to the tune of around 70 percent.

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VIVA.co.id

13 Oktober 2024