Shura Island opens in November with three luxury resorts – The Red Sea EDITION, SLS The Red Sea, and InterContinental – plus a championship golf course.
Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Project isn’t holding back. This November, Shura Island opens with three luxury resorts, a championship golf course, and enough facilities to keep guests occupied for weeks. It’s the Kingdom’s most significant tourism launch in recent memory, and it signals just how serious Saudi Arabia is about becoming a major player in luxury travel.
The timing matters. Whilst Dubai has dominated Gulf tourism for decades, Saudi Arabia is finally opening its doors to international leisure travellers. Shura Island represents the physical manifestation of that ambition.
Foster + Partners Designs an Island That Actually Looks Like It Belongs There
Foster + Partners handled the master planning, and they’ve taken their cues from what they call the Coral Bloom vision. The architecture uses coral stone, natural oak, and sand hues that mirror the island’s existing palette. It’s not revolutionary, but it shows restraint. Too many new resorts scream for attention. This one doesn’t.
The island sits among coral reefs and turquoise lagoons, with white sand beaches forming the perimeter. Foster + Partners shaped the layout to work with the topography rather than against it. The result feels intentional without being overly contrived.
Three Hotels, Three Different Approaches
The opening lineup includes The Red Sea EDITION, SLS The Red Sea, and InterContinental The Red Sea Resort.
Each targets a different type of guest, which makes sense when you’re trying to establish an island from scratch.
The Red Sea EDITION Leads the Opening
EDITION gets first mover advantage, opening in November 2025 with 240 rooms and suites spread along a private kilometre of beachfront. The property overlooks both the Red Sea and Shura Links golf course, giving it arguably the best views on the island.
The interiors stick to EDITION’s usual playbook: understated luxury with enough energy to avoid feeling stuffy. There’s a spa for downtime and JIWA Beach Club for when guests want something more social. The standout is ANASA, an Aegean-inspired restaurant run by Saudi chef Basma Elkhereiji. Her approach to Mediterranean cooking could become reason enough to visit.
EDITION is offering an opening promotion for bookings between 1st November and 23rd December. It includes breakfast for two, late check-out, complimentary cabana access, and a SAR 375 resort credit. Not groundbreaking, but it sweetens the deal for early guests.
SLS The Red Sea Brings Theatre in December
SLS arrives a month later with 150 rooms, suites, and villas, including fifteen pool villas for guests who want maximum privacy. The brand’s known for bold interiors and theatrical touches, and the Red Sea property continues that tradition. Saudi artist Heba Ismail has reinterpreted the iconic SLS duck, giving the property a local artistic connection.
The real draw is the restaurant programme. Five venues cover serious ground: Seabird (from London), Floating World (Japanese), and Fi’lia (Italian). That’s ambitious for an opening lineup, and it positions SLS as the island’s culinary heavyweight from day one.
Beyond the restaurants, there’s a lively pool scene and an outdoor cinema. SLS clearly wants to own the social side of Shura Island, and they’ve got the facilities to do it.
InterContinental Plays the Family Card
InterContinental The Red Sea Resort takes a different approach with 210 rooms and suites, including two-bedroom options for families. It’s classic InterContinental: polished, comfortable, and reliable. After seventy-five years in the business, they know what works.
Five restaurants include Darein, which fuses Levantine and Moroccan flavours, and Chimes, inspired by Mediterranean coastal traditions. Club InterContinental adds an exclusive tier with personalised service, whilst the spa focuses on treatments inspired by the sea.
The opening offer here is particularly generous: daily breakfast and dinner for two, plus fifty per cent off a second room for the first three months. For families or groups, that’s genuine value alongside the luxury positioning.
Championship Golf Arrives on an Island
Shura Links is the Kingdom’s first championship island golf course, and it’s a significant addition. Brian Curley designed the par-72 layout across dunes and shoreline, creating a course where the views compete with the golf for attention.
The clubhouse caters to serious golfers and casual players alike, with elevated dining, a golf academy, and practice greens. This immediately puts Shura Island on the map for golf tourism, which is a lucrative segment that Saudi Arabia hasn’t seriously competed for until now.
Golf courses are expensive to build and maintain, especially on islands. The fact that The Red Sea invested in one from the start shows confidence in long-term demand.
The Village Functions as the Island’s Social Centre
Beyond the resorts, The Village offers retail, dining, and leisure in a promenade setting. There are boutique stores, luxury brands, and a mix of homegrown labels and pop-up concepts. It’s not trying to be a shopping destination, but it provides variety beyond what individual resorts offer.
Families get the Athletic Kids and Beach Club. Divers get a dedicated centre with professional staff. There are wedding venues and open-air entertainment on the central lawn. The Village essentially functions as Shura Island’s town square, giving guests reasons to leave their resorts without leaving the island.
Three Activity Brands Cover Water, Underwater, and Land
The Red Sea has organised activities under three brands, which is clearer than the usual resort mishmash.
WAMA handles water sports: kayaking, canoeing, stand-up paddleboarding, foiling, kite surfing, and sailing. All activities come with expert instruction, which matters when you’re dealing with guests of varying skill levels.
Galaxea focuses on underwater experiences. Scuba diving, PADI courses, conservation dives, heritage dives, and snorkelling excursions are all led by certified professionals. The Red Sea’s marine environment is genuinely special, and Galaxea’s programmes balance enjoyment with education about marine ecosystems.
Akun takes care of land activities: gravel and electric biking, trail running, hiking, climbing, and ziplines. The variety accommodates everyone from casual walkers to serious adventurers.
This three-brand structure makes it easier for guests to understand what’s available and book accordingly.
Shura Marina Connects to the Wider Red Sea
The 118-berth Shura Marina serves as the yachting base for the island. It connects guests to sailing excursions, diving adventures, and sunset cruises across the archipelago. The marina also attracts visiting yacht owners, adding another layer to the island’s guest mix.
Saudi Arabia hasn’t historically been a yachting destination. The marina infrastructure here suggests that the Red Sea wants to change that, positioning itself as a serious player in Middle Eastern marine tourism.
Shura Island – Getting There Is Easier Than Expected
Red Sea International Airport now has direct flights from Riyadh, Jeddah, Dubai, and Doha. One-stop connections link London, Paris, Rome, Milan, Berlin, Frankfurt, Barcelona, Madrid, Almaty, and Moscow. The network is expanding, which gradually removes the “it’s too hard to get there” objection.
From the airport, Shura Island is an hour’s drive across Saudi Arabia’s longest overwater bridge. The bridge itself is an engineering achievement, and the journey provides a dramatic introduction to the destination. Remote island resorts often struggle with access. Shura Island doesn’t have that problem.
What This Opening Actually Means
Shura Island’s November opening is more than three hotels launching at once. It’s a test case for whether Saudi Arabia can compete with established luxury destinations in the region and beyond.
The Red Sea Project has advantages: pristine marine environments, significant investment capital, and government backing. But it also faces challenges: an emerging tourism infrastructure, limited brand recognition, and competition from destinations with decades of experience.
The early signs are promising. Three respected hotel brands, a championship golf course, comprehensive facilities, and improved accessibility create a strong foundation. The real question is whether the execution matches the ambition.
For travellers, Shura Island offers something genuinely new: a luxury island destination in a part of Saudi Arabia that was previously inaccessible to tourists. The marine environment is exceptional. The facilities are world-class. And the timing coincides with Saudi Arabia’s broader tourism push, which means the destination will continue developing rather than stagnating after the initial launch.
Whether you’re interested in golf, diving, luxury hospitality, or simply experiencing a new destination before everyone else discovers it, Shura Island presents a compelling option. It’s not perfect yet. No new destination is. But it’s ambitious, well-funded, and situated in one of the world’s most pristine marine environments.
That’s a strong starting position for any luxury destination.
