Shura Island, also known as Shurayrah, is an uninhabited island in the

Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...

coast of

Tabuk Province Tabuk Province, also known as Tabuk Region ( '), is a province in Saudi Arabia, located along the northwestern coast of the country, facing Egypt across the Red Sea. It also borders Jordan to the north. History The history of Tabuk province ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

. Shura is the main island of

The Red Sea Project The Red Sea Project (), simply referred to as the Red Sea (), is a regenerative tourism megaproject on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia. The project, which is developed by Public Investment Fund-owned Red Sea Global, forms part of the Saudi Vis ...

, a tourism

megaproject A megaproject is an extremely large-scale construction and investment project. A more general definition is "Megaprojects are temporary endeavours (i.e. projects) characterised by: large investment commitment, vast complexity (especially in org ...

that is being constructed on a 92-island archipelago off the Red Sea coast.

Location

The 5.6 km² island is located on the west coast of Saudi Arabia between the cities of

Umluj Umluj () is one of the governorates in Tabuk Region, Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsul ...

and

Al-Wajh Al Wajh (), also written Al Wejh, is a coastal city in north-western Saudi Arabia, situated on the coast of the Red Sea. The city is located in the Tabuk Province. It is one of the largest cities in Tabuk region, with a population of 50,000 as of ...

, 0.9 nautical miles off the coast. The island is one of 92 islands that lie within an archipelago in Al Wajh lagoon, a pristine 2,081 km² area that includes valuable habitats (coral reefs, seagrass, and mangroves) and species of global conservation importance. The island's natural shape has been described as resembling the outline of a

dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal in the cetacean clade Odontoceti (toothed whale). Dolphins belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontopori ...

Background

Shura is home to "Coral Bloom",

's most ambitious construction design. Coral bloom includes hotels from 11 different brands. Coral Bloom was designed by the

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

-based architecture firm

Foster and Partners Foster and Partners (also Foster + Partners) is a British international architecture firm with its headquarters in London, England. It was founded in 1967 by British architect and designer Norman Foster. The firm has been involved in the desig ...

. In addition, the island includes Saudi Arabia's first 18-hole

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, tee box, a #Fairway and rough, fairway, the #Fairway and rough, rough and other hazard (golf), hazards, and ...

and clubhouse. The 7,500 yard course was designed by Brian Curley, with the clubhouse designed by

Foster + Partners Foster and Partners (also Foster + Partners) is a British international architecture firm with its headquarters in London, England. It was founded in 1967 by British architect and designer Norman Foster. The firm has been involved in the design ...

and is expected to open in 2025. Shura is linked to the mainland by Saudi Arabia's longest water bridge, which stretches a total of 1.2 km. The bridge was designed and constructed by

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

-based construction firm

Archirodon Archirodon Group NV is a Greek company with headquarters in Dordrecht, Netherlands and Athens, Greece, that provides services relating to the construction and maintenance of maritime infrastructure and other construction works on an international ...

History

Shura island remained uninhabited and undeveloped for most of its history until a plan to develop the red sea coast of the Saudi Arabia was announced in July 2017 by

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...

Mohammed bin Salman Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud (; born 31 August 1985), also known as MBS or MbS, is the ''de facto'' ruler of the Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, formally serving as Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Sa ...

as part of

Saudi Vision 2030 Saudi Vision 2030 (, sometimes called Project 2030) is a government program launched by Saudi Arabia which aims to achieve the goal of increased diversification economically, socially, and culturally, in line with the vision of Saudi crown pri ...

to develop the kingdom's tourism sector. The island is developed by Red Sea Global, previously "The Red Sea Development Company", which is one of the various companies owned by the

Public Investment Fund The Public Investment Fund (PIF; ) is the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia. It is among the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world with total estimated assets of billion. It was created in 1971 for the purpose of investing funds on be ...

List of hotels

Shura is home to different hotels from various brands. The following is a list of all 11 hotels on Shura Island:

References

External links