London’s Outernet, a few steps from Tottenham Court Road, is an immersive entertainment hub where music, art, and technology collide. Its vast digital screens turn the area into a tapestry of culture and creativity. From November 8, the space came alive with an activation by TOURISE, a global tourism platform launched by the Saudi Ministry of Tourism and powered by the Saudi Tourism Authority.

The campaign, titled “Where Will You Be?”, asks a question that reaches far beyond geography or industry. One that captures how tourism continues to shape our lives, work, and connections.

Tourism is no longer just about destinations. It is a $16 trillion force shaping everything from urban design and sustainability to artificial intelligence and entertainment. As one of the world’s fastest-growing sectors, tourism has become the meeting point of industries. It drives innovation in mobility, fuels hospitality investment, accelerates the green transition, and creates jobs across continents. 

And from November 11 to 13, 2025, the conversation about where this vast, interconnected system goes next will converge in Riyadh.

TOURISE will bring together leaders and visionaries from across industries to define the future of tourism and its role in broader transformation. It aims to redefine the global tourism agenda — capturing the sector’s scale and influence, exploring why Saudi Arabia is emerging as a leader, and what the future holds for an industry that has become a barometer of global progress.

THE STORY 

TOURISE is more than a three-day summit. It’s a year-round ecosystem for collaboration, offering an immersive environment that bridges vision with implementation. It’s an opportunity for tourism professionals, policymakers, and investors to turn ideas into action and shape the next 50 years of tourism.

Bold, dynamic, and informed, TOURISE is designed to reflect the diversity and energy that define modern travel. At its core, the event aims to expand the understanding of tourism. It goes beyond destinations or experiences, serving as a framework for how travel connects industries and ideas. Tourism is no longer just about going places; it’s the pulse of global innovation. That perspective highlights the growing influence of tourism. How it now influences how people move, dine, play, and connect. It is quietly driving change across sectors, strengthening economies, shaping creativity, and redefining what growth means. 

THE BENEFIT 

Tourism touches everything, everywhere. It fuels transportation networks, powers entertainment ecosystems, drives culinary exploration, and strengthens supply chains. It’s the connective tissue of the global economy. That connection is reflected in the numbers. Sports tourism is projected to reach $1.3 trillion by 2032, highlighting its expanding role in driving year-round travel demand. Major concerts are also fueling economic activity beyond the stage, boosting hotel performance by up to 25% and highlighting the growing influence of cultural tourism.

Artificial intelligence is also reshaping how people plan, book, and experience travel, with the market expected to exceed $58 billion by 2029. Technology isn’t just supporting tourism. It’s transforming it.

The same is true for wellness, now one of the fastest-growing areas in global travel. The wellness economy is projected to reach nearly $9 trillion by 2028, with tourism at its heart. Together, these shifts underline a powerful truth: the future of tourism is the future of everything. 

THE FUTURE 

Few countries embody this transformation as visibly as Saudi Arabia. The Kingdom has rapidly become one of the most ambitious global investors in tourism, with Vision 2030 positioning the sector as a pillar of national diversification. Saudi Arabia’s role in the future of tourism is not just significant, it’s pioneering. 

From NEOM to Diriyah, AlUla to The Red Sea, Saudi Arabia is investing billions into destinations that fuse heritage, sustainability, and technology. Hosting TOURISE in Riyadh is both symbolic and strategic. It signals the country’s intent not only to participate in the tourism economy but to lead its next era.

The “Where Will You Be?” campaign distills that mission into a single question: in this new era of tourism, where do you fit in?

For policymakers, it’s a call to embed sustainability and innovation into national tourism agendas. For hoteliers, it’s a call to rethink the guest experience through data and design. For destination marketers, it’s a reminder that storytelling is now as much about purpose as it is about place. And for investors, it’s a signal that the smartest capital today is destination capital — long-term, inclusive, and transformative.

Tourism is not a backdrop to global progress; it’s a blueprint for it.