Saudi Arabia's incredible way of doing theme parks

On August 24, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Emmanuel Macron met in Paris and sealed a deal that left me stunned: three theme parks northwest of Paris with a €6 billion investment. That's what Preferente reports. Not one park, three. And not built by Disney, but by Saudi money.

The funny thing is that Saudi Arabia, instead of keeping entertainment at home, is exporting it to Europe. They already invested in Formula 1, in football, and now in theme parks near Paris. Meanwhile, in Spain we're still debating whether to expand an airport. That's the difference between seeing tourism as an industry and seeing it as an expense.

I see an opportunity here for agencies and tour operatorsTour operatorA tour operator is the company that bundles flight, hotel and transfers into a single organised trip and sells it, usually through travel agencies. It buys in bulk and in advance, which gives it price but loads it wit...: if these parks open, Paris will become an even stronger family destination. And mind you, the Saudis do business fast and without complexes. Let's hope we learn something, because while we discuss, they're already building. The full story explains the scope of the project, which is far from trivial.