Geotourism Development and Opportunity of Monogenetic Volcanic Fields of Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia went through a dramatic transformation in the last decade and tourism in general is a key economy field where major improvements and developments initiated. Beside the traditional religious tourism recently major steps were taken to develop regenerative tourism in the Kingdom and exploring several aspects of niche tourism. Geotourism as one form of niche tourism has been recently named as a key approach for developing the tourism industry. The arid climate and the desert landscape in combination with the mountainous terrains makes Saudi Arabia a logical place to evolve dramatically along Geotourism ventures as most of the rocks are exposed and presented in a dramatic landscape. Here we explore the latest developments in the Geotourism concepts within the Kingdom with special relevance to the abundance of monogenetic volcanic landforms in arid settings.