Saudi Arabia Launches New Accelerator Wave to Boost Tourism Startups

If you've been following Arageek over the past few years—as I have—you'll know all too well how passionate we are about waving the flag for startups across the MENA region. So it's pretty exciting news (well… I mean, it's not Silicon Valley level, but still) coming from Saudi Arabia this week. The Tourism Development Fund (TDF) has announced three brand-new incubator and accelerator programmes aimed at empowering local tourism entrepreneurs and startups. Spot on initiatives, if you ask me.

First up is the Grow Tourism Incubator, dedicated to nurturing budding startups still finding their footing. Registration kicked off on June 24th and runs through July 17th, 2025. This ten-month sytsem provides fledgling businesses with everything from shared workspaces to legal and marketing support. Not just that—the participants even receive tailored workshops and hands-on guidance from industry veterans. It's basically a full toolbox for anyone serious about making their mark in the tourism industry.

The second initiative, Tourism Hackathons & Bootcamps, focuses specifically on three key Saudi Arabian regions—Asir, Al-Ahsa, and Al-Madinah Al Munawwarah. This five-month adventure starts with hackathons and progresses into intense training bootcamps, helping creative minds develop their concepts into solid prototypes. I reckon programmes like this could really help kickstart innovation in the sector from the ground up.

And believe it or not, there's more. The Grow Tourism Accelerator returns for yet another edition—clearly buoyed by previous success stories, with an impressive 99 graduates already chalked up to date. This accelerator offers a three-month bootcamp packed with guidance and networking, connecting startups with both domestic and international investors. Not a bad deal, is it?

When announcing these initiatives, TDF's CEO Qusai bin Abdullah Al-Fakhri reiterated the Fund’s commitment to supporting entrepreneurs, stressing their intent to create concrete, impactful projects aligned with Saudi's Vision 2030 aim. Hearing this makes me feel chuffed to bits for the region's startup ecosystem.

Overall, TDF Grow's varied initiatives have already benefitted more than 8,800 entrepreneurs through their non-financial support. These latest efforts just seem like another promising addition. Initiatives like these genuinely move the needle in creating a sustainable and dynamic startup culture across Saudi Arabia.

So if you're an entrepreneur eyeing opportunities in tourism, you'd better jump on it. To learn more or sign up, pop over to TDF’s official site.

Exciting times ahead for Saudi startups—I can't wait to see which projects spring from these initiatives, can you?

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