The hospitality industry is entering an era of unprecedented scale.
From Saudi Arabia’s megaprojects like NEOM and the Red Sea to Europe’s iconic developments of Central Communication Port and Asia’s integrated resorts, destinations worldwide are redefining what tourism, culture and entertainment can be.
This guide explores the largest new projects shaping the global hospitality ecosystem, the leaders driving them and the events where their visions are shared.
Together, they form not just individual destinations but interconnected ecosystems influencing economies, travel patterns, and the future of global hospitality itself.
Megaprojects in Hospitality Ecosystem
Middle-East
- NEOM — Magna / Trojena / Sindalah / The Line / OXAGON (NEOM cluster) — multiple luxury hotel developments, island & mountain resorts, large-scale masterplan tied to Saudi Vision 2030 (dozens of hotels, thousands of rooms across NEOM regions).
- Magna (Saudi) — coastal luxury resort cluster inside NEOM.
- Trojena (Saudi) — mountain ski & year-round resort within NEOM.
- Sindalah (Saudi) — luxury island resort / marina.
- The Line (Saudi) — narrow city strip extending many tens of km, with mirrored walls, hospitality and more
- OXAGON / other NEOM regions (Saudi) — mixed-use and hospitality components.
- The Red Sea Project (Saudi) — multi-island luxury resort destination. 8000 hotel rooms across 50 hotels and 1000+ residential properties.
- AMAALA (Saudi) — wellness / ultra-luxury Red Sea destination. Approximately 4000 hotel rooms accross 30 hotels and 1200 residential villas.
- Masar Destination (Makkah, Saudi) — huge pilgrim & hospitality redevelopment. 24000 hotel rooms and 13000 residential units.
- Qiddiya City (Riyadh region, Saudi) — entertainment city with multiple resorts and themed hotels. 27 attractions, 275 rides, 12 theme parks, 2000 art installations, 43 sports facilities, 73000 seats for Esports events, 550 rooms and 120 villa units in private race resort.
- Bawadi / Dubailand (Dubai, UAE) — massive historic Dubailand hotel corridor masterplan which is not finished yet.
- Dubai Creek Harbour & Dubai Creek Tower area developments (Dubai, UAE) — large hotel + waterfront mixed-use.
- Palm Jebel Ali / The Palm extensions (Dubai, UAE) — proposed mega-island resort clusters (various paused/active phases).
- Dubai Islands (formerly Bluewaters / development clusters) — multi-hotel island projects.
- Abu Dhabi Saadiyat Island expansions (UAE) — cultural district + hotels (new hotels and branded resorts).
- Madinat al-Hareer / silk city (Kuwait) — one of the largest mixed-use project development concepts in the world.
- Al Maktoum International Airport (Dubai, UAE) — This project aims to become the world's largest airport by 2050, with a projected capacity of 260 million passengers annually.
Asia-Pacific
- Resorts World Manila expansions & Entertainment City (Philippines) — large integrated resort cluster and multiple expansions.
- Okada Manila expansion (Philippines) — major integrated resort phases.
- City of Dreams (Manila and Macau) expansions — large IRs with periodic phases.
- Solaire / Entertainment City projects (Philippines) — ongoing resort/hotel investments.
- Galaxy Macau Phase 3 / Cotai Strip expansions (Macau, China) — major resort expansions on Cotai.
- The Venetian Macao / Sands Cotai / MGM Cotai expansions (Macau) — continual large-scale IR projects.
- Hoiana Resort & Golf (Vietnam) — a major integrated resort and regional hub.
- Vinpearl / Vingroup mega-resort clusters (Phu Quoc, Nha Trang, Van Don — Vietnam) — large resort chains and island developments.
- Forest City (Johor / Malaysia) — mixed-use development with significant hotel/resort components (initially massive planned scale).
- Sanya Atlantis (Hainan, China) — mega resort destination (existing, large expansions historically).
- Jeju Dream Tower & Jeju integrated developments (South Korea) — big hotel & resort complexes on Jeju Island.
- Incheon / Songdo waterfront resort & hotel developments (South Korea) — large scale mixed-use hospitality projects.
- Resorts World Sentosa & Sentosa follow-on projects (Singapore) — large ongoing hospitality investments.
- Genting Highlands / Genting SkyWorlds expansions (Malaysia) — large resort cluster projects and hotel growth.
- Changi Airport (Singapore) — The development of Terminal 5, a massive expansion scheduled for the mid-2030s, will add 50 million passengers in capacity and boost the airport's overall ability by over 50%.
- Noida International Airport (India) — This new airport is one of the world's largest megaprojects under construction and development.
- Long Thanh International Airport (Vietnam) — New airport in Ho Chi Minh City, billed as the most expensive infrastructure project in the country’s history
Europe-USA
- Therme Group international wellness resort rollouts (various markets) — multiple big-scale resort builds (e.g., Therme Manchester). Therme Manchester (UK) — very large wellness resort & water attraction with hotel components (multi-hundred million GBP project).
- Grand Sierra Resort expansion (Reno, USA) — large casino-resort expansion (arena + new hotel tower).
- Central Communication Port (Solidarity Transport Hub, CPK) ) — New airport with 2 runways, terminals, retail, parking. Integrated transport hub (air + high speed rail + highways). Initial capacity ~45 million pax/year, eventually up to 100 million.
Key People
Saudi
- Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman — driving force behind Saudi Vision 2030; ultimate patron of NEOM, Red Sea, AMAALA, Qiddiya.
- Nadhmi Al-Nasr — CEO of NEOM.
- John Pagano — CEO of Red Sea Global (oversees both Red Sea Project & AMAALA).
- Philippe Gas — former CEO of Qiddiya Investment Company (early leadership, ex-Euro Disney CEO).
- Abdullah bin Dawood — Group CEO of Seera Group; plays a role in Makkah tourism/hospitality (Masar-linked).
Dubai / UAE
- Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum — Ruler of Dubai; patron of Dubailand, Palm, Bawadi.
- Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem — Group Chairman & CEO, DP World; involved in island projects.
- Mohamed Alabbar — Founder of Emaar (Burj Khalifa, Dubai Creek Harbour, hospitality projects).
- Aldar Properties leadership — oversees Saadiyat Island’s hospitality and cultural district hotels.
Macau & Asian
- Lawrence Ho — Chairman & CEO, Melco Resorts (City of Dreams).
- Francis Lui — Vice-Chairman, Galaxy Entertainment Group (Galaxy Macau).
- Kazuo Okada — Founder, Okada Manila (Philippines).
- Enrique Razon Jr. — Chairman, Bloomberry Resorts (Solaire, Manila).
Singapore & Malaysia
- Lim Kok Thay — Chairman, Genting Group (Resorts World Sentosa, Genting Highlands).
- Las Vegas Sands leadership (see above) — also behind Marina Bay Sands, Singapore.
Vietnam & Indonesia
- Pham Nhat Vuong — Founder, Vingroup (Vinpearl resorts, Vietnam).
- Hoi An South Development Consortium leadership (Hoiana Resort & Golf; Suncity Group, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises).
Europe & USA
- Iulius & Therme Group executives (e.g., Dr. Robert Hanea, Chairman & CEO, Therme Group) — building large wellness resorts (Therme Manchester, etc.).
- Grand Sierra Resort (Reno, USA) — owned by Alex Meruelo, Meruelo Group.
- Wynn Resorts leadership (Craig Billings, CEO) — major expansions in the US and abroad.
Events
Global & Cross-Industry
- World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) Global Summit — the Davos of tourism; attended by CEOs, ministers, developers.
- Arabian Travel Market (ATM, Dubai) — biggest Middle East travel trade & investment expo; NEOM, Red Sea, Dubai Tourism present projects here.
- International Hospitality Investment Forum (IHIF, Berlin) — global investors, hotel chains, and developers; thought leadership on financing mega projects.
- World Future Hospitality Summit (Riyadh / Dubai) — regionally focused, Saudi giga-project leaders often headline.
- Skift Global Forum (New York + regional editions) — media-driven, high-level tourism and hospitality strategy event.
Development & Real Estate
- Cityscape Global (Saudi Arabia, previously Dubai) — real estate and hospitality developers present large projects (NEOM, Qiddiya, Masar).
- Expo Real (Munich, Germany) — major property & hospitality investment fair.
- MIPIM (Cannes, France) — global real estate summit with hospitality tracks.
Integrated Resorts / Gaming / Entertainment
- Global Gaming Expo (G2E, Las Vegas / Asia edition in Macau) — casino-resort and entertainment leaders (Las Vegas Sands, Melco, Galaxy).
- ASEAN Gaming Summit (Manila, Philippines) — integrated resort leadership across Southeast Asia.
- ICE London (International Casino Exhibition) — IRs, hospitality tech, leisure investment.
Global casino innovation ecosystem.
Hospitality & Hotel
- Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP, Hong Kong) — investment + leadership conference.
- Arabian Hotel Investment Conference (AHIC, part of Future Hospitality Summit) — Middle East hotel investment leaders.
- The Lodging Conference (USA) — hotel owners, developers, asset managers.
- Boutique Hotel Investment Conference (NYC) — smaller scale, but influential in luxury/wellness.
Global hospitality companies and brands.
Specialty / Luxury / Wellness
- ILTM (International Luxury Travel Market, Cannes + Asia + Arabia) — luxury travel and hospitality’s biggest marketplace.
- Wellness Real Estate & Hospitality Summit (Global Wellness Institute events) — wellness-driven resorts (like AMAALA, Therme Group).
- World Spa & Wellness Convention — niche but influential in wellness resorts.
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