“The mix of cultural events, pop-up restaurants and sports matches starting this week could be sustained by domestic demand even if the hoped-for tourists don’t come.”

-Faisal Bafarat, chief executive of the General Entertainment Authority. This year’s Riyadh Season is targeting 11.5 million visitors – including half a million international tourists.  For the 2019 Riyadh Season $830 million was spent on events which generated $1,6 billion in “direct and indirect” revenue. [Bloomberg]