Makkah

Makkah’s Grand Mosque, which contains the Kaaba, is the holiest site in Islam and a place of pilgrimage for millions of Muslims worldwide. As pilgrim numbers continue to rise, the region’s hospitality and infrastructure services are witnessing significant expansion. Makkah currently has a total of 107,000 hotel rooms, with the wider Makkah region accounting for two-thirds of the Kingdom’s hospitality facilities. Meanwhile real estate saw strong growth in 2014 with the sector posting 22% growth in Makkah and Medina. Ongoing infrastructure upgrades include the Makkah Integrated Transport system. Announced in 2014, the system will feature a network of four metro lines covering a total length of 114 km, and a four-tiered bus system including bus rapid transit, local buses and a feeder service. Elsewhere, the $21bn expansion of the Grand Mosque, which began in the mid-2000s, is expected to boost its capacity to between 1.6m and 2.2m pilgrims when completed.