The travel and tourism sector in the Middle East continued to strengthen its presence on the map of the world's most active destinations, driven by record investments and ambitious government visions. In this context, Forbes Middle East released its annual list of the most powerful travel and tourism leaders in the region for 2025.
The list includes 100 leading figures running major projects in hospitality, tourist destinations, hotel chains, airports, airlines, travel services and innovative tourism initiatives. The ranking was based on the size of the companies' business, asset values, the number of hotels and rooms and visitor numbers, in addition to professional experience, achievements and influence on the regional tourism landscape.
In terms of nationalities, Emiratis topped the list with 15 leaders, followed by Saudis with 14 leaders, then Britons with 9 leaders, making these 3 nationalities the largest share of the ranking.
The projects led by these leaders reflect the strong momentum in the region's tourism sector, from expansions in airport infrastructure and aviation networks to the launch of world-class tourism and entertainment destinations.
In June 2025, Bander Almohanna, CEO and Managing Director of flynas, led the company's $1.1 billion initial public offering on the Main Market of the Saudi Exchange (Tadawul), making it the first airline listed on the Saudi market.
April 2024 also saw the launch of "Real Madrid World" in Dubai, the world's first theme park bearing the name of the storied Spanish club, under the leadership of Fernando Eiroa, CEO of Dubai Holding Entertainment.
In Morocco, Fatim-Zahra Ammor, Minister of Tourism, Handicrafts and Social and Solidarity Economy, oversaw the establishment of the country's first tourism projects bank, comprising more than 200 investment-ready projects.
This diversity of achievements confirms that the travel and tourism sector in the Middle East remains one of the main engines of economic growth despite global challenges, building on long-term strategies that strengthen the region's position as a leading destination on the international tourism map.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum
Fahd Hamidaddin
Badr Mohammed Al Meer
Saleh Mohamed Al Geziry
Fatim-Zahra Ammor
Raed bin Hassan Al Idrisi
Hisham Al Qassim
Hamid Matar Al Dhaheri
Mohamed Abdalla Al Zaabi
Paul Griffiths
Shaikha Nasser Al Nowais
Hisham Talaat Moustafa
Ibrahim Al Omar
Sandeep Walia
John Pagano
Kabir Mulchandani
Elena Sorlini
Qusai Al Fakhri
Abdulla Rashid Al Abdooli
Shabib Al Maamari
Jerry Inzerillo
Thomas Mayer
Antonoaldo Neves
Philip Barnes
Abdulaziz Ali Al Mawlawi
Hamed Al Shaiti
Duncan O'Rourke
Imad Barqad
Bander Almohanna
Ghaith Al Ghaith
Philippe Zuber
Adeeb Ahamed
Tarek El Sayed
Guy Hutchinson
Kamel Abou Aly
Abdul Razzaq Arabiyat
Adel Al Faqir
Sultan Al Otaibi
Raki Phillips
Fernando Eiroa
Ahmed Adel
Wahdan Sulaiman Al Qadi
Mohamed El Mehdi El Halaoui
Lars Clasen
Abdelhamid Addou
Saleh Al Habdan
Fahd bin Mohammed Al Obailan
Ali Salem Al Midfa
Mehdi Chaouch
Abeer Al Akel
Adrian Messerli
Amir Golbarg
Khalid Anib
Khalid Jasim Al Midfa
Basmah bint Abdulaziz Al Mayman
Marloes Knippenberg
Rakan Al Harthi
Hashil Al Mahrouqi
Abdulwahab Al Shatti
Nader Ahmed Al Hammadi
Christophe Mares
Stefan Schupbach
Kamel Al Awadhi
Khalifa bin Brek
Sara Ahmed Buhiji
Fabian Toscano
Nadia Zaal
Stephen Ansell
Tim Cordon
Talal Jassim Al Bahar
Bani Haddad
Prateek Kumar
Alison Grinnell
Ahmed Shanan
Ahmed Janahi
Saurabh Tiwari
Muzammil Ahussain
Samer Majali
Arnaud Martinez
Chris Nader and Noel Homsi
Simon Lee
Tapan Biplani
Siddique Ahmed
Mohamed Hussain Ahmed
Adel Mardini
Jeffrey Goh
Fred Fesali
Joseph Karam
Hossam El-Shaer
Adrian Hamilton-Manns
Saeed Al Shanfari
Shaikha Al Kaabi
Hadi Moawad
Ahmad Abu Ghazaleh
Mohamed Amer
Mohamed Awadalla
Osama Sharouf
Moein Sarhan
Haneen Al Subaie
J.S. Anand
To view the post on the Forbes website, click here.
