Saudi Arabia’s first water park to be region's largest with 22 rides and slides

Qiddiya water theme park will be a year-round attraction with nine 'world-first' rides

The $746.6-million water theme park is opening inside Qiddiya, one of Saudi Arabia's giga-projects. Photo: Qiddiya Investment Company

Saudi Arabia will build the kingdom’s first water park at Qiddiya near Riyadh.

The mega-park will have 22 rides and slides, nine of which are brand new ones featuring for the first time at Qiddiya water theme park.

Set to be the largest water park in the region, covering more than 252,000 square metres of land, it will be bigger than Aquaventure Waterpark at Atlantis, The Palm in Dubai, the current title-holder.

The 2.8 billion Saudi riyal ($746.6 million) water theme park is opening inside Qiddiya, one of Saudi Arabia's giga-projects and a place that's being billed as the future capital of entertainment, sports and culture.

It will have nine different zones, each of which is named after local nature and wildlife, such as Camel Rock, Arabian Peak, Wave Wadi and Viper Canyon.

Smart technology will play a major role in the park's operation, with several initiatives in place to reduce the amount of water needed to operate the park.

Advanced environmental systems will minimise water use through recycling and smart usage and rides have been designed to use less water than more traditional water park slides, some of them slashing water usage by as much as 75 per cent.

The park will also integrate technologies that reduce water pressure on rides, cutting water wastage from evaporation by up to 50 per cent.

Swimmers don't need to worry about plunging into deep pools after a ride. The attractions in the park will use what's called a "run-out" concept, meaning that slides will end in shallower pools that allow adventurers to glide gently out and simultaneously use less water.

The park will also have state-of-the-art competition facilities so that it can host future water sports tournaments. It will also have 17 food and beverage outlets.

There are also plans to make use of the occasional rainy days in the region, with rainwater falling on the site being collected, treated and used for irrigating the destination.

“The Qiddiya water theme park will be a year-round immersive family entertainment destination, the first of its kind and offering experiences that have never before been offered in Saudi,” said Abdullah bin Nasser Aldawood, board member and managing director at Qiddiya Investment Company.

The water park is the latest addition to be announced for Qiddiya, the kingdom’s mega entertainment hub.

A $3.7bn Six Flags Qiddiya is also being built at the site, which will be home to the Falcon Flight, the tallest, longest and fastest roller coaster in the world.

Qiddiya is one of several giga-projects announced as part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.

Scroll through the gallery to see renderings of Six Flags Qiddiya: