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Lonely Planet to Publish Tourist Guidebook on Saudi Arabia | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat- Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Commission for Tourism (SCT) has announced that the acclaimed and world-renowned ‘Lonely Planet’ publication, which has published a multitude of guidebooks covering worldwide tourist destinations in eight languages, intends to release a guidebook on the tourist spots in Saudi Arabia following an impending field visit to the kingdom by the publication’s editorial team. The visit will be coordinated by Saudi’s Ministry of Culture and Information, the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in London and the SCT, who will also participate in leading the guidebook’s publishing personnel on an exploratory tour of the kingdom’s tourist sights and services.

Secretary-General of the SCT and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Disabled Children Association (DCA), Prince Sultan Bin Salman, confirmed the news of the upcoming publication of the guidebook during his meeting with an academic delegation from Harvard University, USA, at the DCA headquarters in Riyadh last week.

Prince Sultan pointed out that Saudi’s natural sights receive the attention and effort of the concerned governmental authorities who ensure that preservation and due care are given. Additionally, the Saudi Geological Survey continues to make extensive efforts in research and documentation of the natural sights, amongst which is dispatching a number of expeditions that include both citizens and international experts.

Prince Sultan touched upon the cultural richness and social resourcefulness of the vast state, citing the unified basis on which the late King Abdulaziz founded the kingdom, which as a result has deepened its tourist attraction by virtue of the diversity of its citizens, ethics and traditions. The Prince’s statement emphasized the benevolence and humanitarian spirit of his country and the role its leadership and its people play. It is this same charitable spirit that gave rise to the DCS, the body that hosted the aforementioned meeting.