{"id":105834,"date":"2026-02-15T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/02\/15\/the-kingdom-is-shifting-toward-makkah-amid-scaling-back-of-desert-gigaprojects\/"},"modified":"2026-02-15T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T00:00:00","slug":"the-kingdom-is-shifting-toward-makkah-amid-scaling-back-of-desert-gigaprojects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/02\/15\/the-kingdom-is-shifting-toward-makkah-amid-scaling-back-of-desert-gigaprojects\/","title":{"rendered":"The Kingdom is shifting toward Makkah amid scaling back of desert gigaprojects"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/strong>The Kingdom\u2019s sh<\/strong>ift from gigaprojects to holy ground has caught <\/strong>Bloomberg\u2019s<\/a><\/strong>eye<\/strong>, shedding light on Makkah\u2019s rapidly changing skyline as luxury towers, hotels, and the USD 27 bn Masar project by Umm Al Qura pop up across the holy city. The transition is part of a strategic pivot from stalled gigaprojects like Neom toward high-return sectors, with religious tourism \u2014 already generating bns \u2014 driving foreign investment and sending land prices near the Grand Mosque among the world\u2019s highest.<\/p>\n

When Makkah opened her gates:<\/strong> After Makkah\u2019s property market was officially opened to global investors and overseas Muslims, it commandeered \u201cMonte Carlo prices\u201d near the Grand Mosque where land values hit USD 87k per sqm and attracted titans like BlackRock and HSBC, according to Bloomberg. The surge is underpinned by year-round pilgrimage demand, relaxed Umrah visas, and rapid hospitality expansion \u2014 from Ramadan suites topping USD 10k a night to the forthcoming world\u2019s largest Courtyard by Marriott.<\/p>\n

The boom brings trade-offs: <\/strong>Rising costs, heavier crowds, and the loss of historic neighborhoods have drawn concern from pilgrims and scholars, while experts warn against oversupply in the luxury segment, the business information service said.<\/p>\n

(** Tap or click the headline above to read this story with all of the links<\/strong> to our background and outside sources.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Global financial giants like BlackRock and HSBC are entering a property market that now rivals the world\u2019s most expensive cities<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":105835,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_primary_brand":0,"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2561],"tags":[10,3459,106,229],"brand":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"class_list":["post-105834","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-saudi-in-the-news","tag-enterpriseam-ksa","tag-makkah","tag-real-estate","tag-saudi-in-the-news","wpautop","entry"],"acf":{"mongo_id":"24c82c6d-3a38-4536-8a4e-423a2ff7a50f","order":"9","is_powered_by":false,"story_type":"1","photo_url":"https:\/\/ent.news\/2026\/2\/918.jpg","photo_position":"above","homepage_title":"","full_issue_title":"Makkah property market becomes a magnet for global capital","related_issue":[105819],"teaser":"Global financial giants like BlackRock and HSBC are entering a property market that now rivals the world\u2019s most expensive cities"},"yoast_head":"\nThe Kingdom is shifting toward Makkah amid scaling back of desert gigaprojects - 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