Red Sea Global Unveils Shura Island: A New Era of Luxury Tourism Begins This September

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 15, 2025--

Red Sea Global (RSG), the developer behind regenerative tourism destinations The Red Sea and AMAALA, has announced that the first resorts and attractions on Shura Island will begin opening to guests in the coming weeks.

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The EDITION Red Sea, opening soon on Shura Island features 240 elegantly designed rooms and suites.

Phase one of the launch includes the debut of SLS, EDITION, and InterContinental hotels, along with Shura Links, Saudi Arabia’s first island golf course. This moment marks a major milestone for RSG as it continues making Vision 2030’s ambitions for national transformation and economic diversification a reality for the people of Saudi Arabia, as well as demonstrating the possibility of regenerative tourism.

“As the heart of The Red Sea, Shura Island represents everything Red Sea Global stands for: bold ambition, deep respect for nature, and a commitment to redefining tourism in Saudi Arabia and beyond. With the soft opening of Shura in the coming weeks, we move closer to achieving our mission to set new standards in regenerative tourism, while realizing Vision 2030,” said John Pagano, Group CEO of Red Sea Global.

Shura Island will eventually be home to 11 world-class resorts, all of which will open across the next few months. When fully complete, the island will offer guests unparalleled access to pristine natural landscapes, luxurious amenities, high-end food and beverage and retail, signature experiences and cultural programming, making it the beating heart of this world-leading tourism destination.

Guests will either arrive by boat to the island’s marina or by electric vehicle across the stunning 3.3km Shura crossing — including Saudi Arabia’s longest internal bridge. From there, they will be immersed in a world of turquoise lagoons, untouched beaches, and elevated hospitality.

Red Sea International Airport (RSI), which is situated within three hours' flying time of 250 million people and eight hours' flying time for 85% of the world’s population, is the gateway to The Red Sea destination. It is already welcoming a regular schedule of domestic and international flights. Most recently it was announced that Qatar Airways will operate direct flights to RSI three times a week from next month, with further air lift expected to be announced soon.

A trio of world-class hospitality brands

The following resorts will welcome first guests in the coming weeks:

Looking ahead, the remaining eight resorts are on track to open in the coming months. This includes: Faena; Fairmont; Four Seasons; Grand Hyatt; Jumeirah; Miraval; Raffles; and Rosewood.

Naturally dolphin-shaped, Shura Island is the vibrant heart of The Red Sea. The overarching design concept, developed by world-renowned architects Foster + Partners, is affectionately known as ‘Coral Bloom’ due to the inspiration the surrounding coral reefs give to the architecture.

The resorts on Shura have been conceived to blend seamlessly with the island’s pristine environment. The development is carefully engineered to minimize environmental impact and maximize energy efficiency. For instance, like the rest of The Red Sea, Shura is entirely powered by renewable energy.

As well as resorts, Shura Island is the setting for a collection of exclusive homes. The first properties available to buy on the island were announced earlier this year and will be ready for handover at the end of 2025. Residents will have access to all of the island’s entertainments, as well as its pristine beaches and azure waters, while also offering seamless access to the wider destination and iconic resorts.

The Kingdom's first island golf course

Shura Links will also open in September, offering a world-class golfing experience that combines challenge, design, and sustainability. As Saudi Arabia’s first island golf course, Shura Links offers spectacular views and a course designed to blend natural desert landscapes with lush fairways. Sustainability is a key focus, with innovative water management and eco-friendly practices integral to its design and operation. Easily accessible from all Shura Island resorts, as well available to guests and residents at other resorts at The Red Sea, it promises an unforgettable golfing experience in a pristine coastal setting.

RSG’s impact on nature and communities extends far beyond the borders of its destinations. Through its transformative destinations at The Red Sea and AMAALA, it is creating 120,000 new jobs, driving economic growth and fostering a sustainable future for all.

For more information on how to book visit www.visitredsea.com.

About Red Sea Global

Red Sea Global (RSG - www.redseaglobal.com ) is a vertically integrated real estate developer with a diverse portfolio across tourism, residential, experiences, infrastructure, transport, healthcare, and services. This includes the luxury regenerative tourism destinations The Red Sea, which began welcoming guests in 2023, and AMAALA, which remains on track to welcome first guests in 2025.

A third destination, Thuwal Private Retreat, opened in 2024. RSG has also been entrusted with refurbishment works at Al Wajh Airport, focused on upgrading the existing terminal and infrastructure, and building a new international terminal.

RSG is a PIF company and a cornerstone of Saudi Arabia’s ambition to diversify its economy. Across its growing portfolio of destinations, subsidiaries, and businesses, RSG seeks to lead the world towards a more sustainable future, showing how responsible development can uplift communities, drive economies, and enhance the environment.

The InterContinental Red Sea resort design is inspired by coral reefs.

NUUK, Greenland (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump has turned the Arctic island of Greenland into a geopolitical hotspot with his demands to own it and suggestions that the U.S. could take it by force.

The island is a semiautonomous region of Denmark, and Denmark's foreign minister said Wednesday after a meeting at the White House that a “ fundamental disagreement ” remains with Trump over the island.

The crisis is dominating the lives of Greenlanders and "people are not sleeping, children are afraid, and it just fills everything these days. And we can’t really understand it,” Naaja Nathanielsen, a Greenlandic minister said at a meeting with lawmakers in Britain’s Parliament this week.

Here's a look at what Greenlanders have been saying:

Trump has dismissed Denmark’s defenses in Greenland, suggesting it’s “two dog sleds.”

By saying that, Trump is “undermining us as a people,” Mari Laursen told AP.

Laursen said she used to work on a fishing trawler but is now studying law. She approached AP to say she thought previous examples of cooperation between Greenlanders and Americans are “often overlooked when Trump talks about dog sleds.”

She said during World War II, Greenlandic hunters on their dog sleds worked in conjunction with the U.S. military to detect Nazi German forces on the island.

“The Arctic climate and environment is so different from maybe what they (Americans) are used to with the warships and helicopters and tanks. A dog sled is more efficient. It can go where no warship and helicopter can go,” Laursen said.

Trump has repeatedly claimed Russian and Chinese ships are swarming the seas around Greenland. Plenty of Greenlanders who spoke to AP dismissed that claim.

“I think he (Trump) should mind his own business,” said Lars Vintner, a heating engineer.

“What's he going to do with Greenland? He speaks of Russians and Chinese and everything in Greenlandic waters or in our country. We are only 57,000 people. The only Chinese I see is when I go to the fast food market. And every summer we go sailing and we go hunting and I never saw Russian or Chinese ships here in Greenland,” he said.

Down at Nuuk's small harbor, Gerth Josefsen spoke to AP as he attached small fish as bait to his lines. He said, “I don't see them (the ships)” and said he had only seen “a Russian fishing boat ten years ago.”

Maya Martinsen, 21, a shop worker, told AP she doesn't believe Trump wants Greenland to enhance America's security.

“I know it’s not national security. I think it’s for the oils and minerals that we have that are untouched,” she said, suggesting the Americans are treating her home like a “business trade.”

She said she thought it was good that American, Greenlandic and Danish officials met in the White House Wednesday and said she believes that “the Danish and Greenlandic people are mostly on the same side,” despite some Greenlanders wanting independence.

“It is nerve-wrecking, that the Americans aren’t changing their mind,” she said, adding that she welcomed the news that Denmark and its allies would be sending troops to Greenland because “it’s important that the people we work closest with, that they send support.”

Tuuta Mikaelsen, a 22-year-old student, told AP that she hopes the U.S. got the message from Danish and Greenlandic officials to “back off.”

She said she didn't want to join the United States because in Greenland “there are laws and stuff, and health insurance .. .we can go to the doctors and nurses ... we don’t have to pay anything,” she said adding "I don’t want the U.S. to take that away from us.”

In Greenland's parliament, Juno Berthelsen, MP for the Naleraq opposition party that campaigns for independence in the Greenlandic parliament told AP that he has done multiple media interviews every day for the last two weeks.

When asked by AP what he would say to Trump and Vice President JD Vance if he had the chance, Berthelsen said:

“I would tell them, of course, that — as we’ve seen — a lot of Republicans as well as Democrats are not in favor of having such an aggressive rhetoric and talk about military intervention, invasion. So we would tell them to move beyond that and continue this diplomatic dialogue and making sure that the Greenlandic people are the ones who are at the very center of this conversation.”

“It is our country,” he said. “Greenland belongs to the Greenlandic people.”

Kwiyeon Ha and Evgeniy Maloletka contributed to this report.

FILE - A woman pushes a stroller with her children in Nuuk, Greenland, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka, File)

Military vessel HDMS Knud Rasmussen of the Royal Danish Navy patrols near Nuuk, Greenland, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Juno Berthelsen, MP for the Naleraq opposition party that campaigns for independence in the Greenlandic parliament poses for photo at his office in Nuuk, Greenland, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Fisherman Gerth Josefsen prepares fishing lines at the harbour of Nuuk, Greenland, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A woman walks on a street past a Greenlandic national flag in Nuuk, Greenland, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)