Trojena, Neom’s latest project, lies 50km from the Gulf of Aqaba coast and at an elevation that ranges from 1,500m to 2,600m. The development, once ready to welcome guests in 2027, will be home to luxury resorts, adventure sports and skiing.
While there is an emphasis on building the area, there are strict rules in place to ensure the project does not impinge on natural reserves, TTN learns in an interview with Clark Williams, Marketing and Communications Director at Neom. “Ninety-five per cent of everything in our master plan has to be nature reserve. So, of our 1,400 square kilometres in Trojena, we’re only developing 57 square kilometres,” he says.
Neom is committed to “redefining liveability”, says Williams. Which means the area is being developed with an eye on sustainability, so on the cards is a high-speed rail and electric transportation. “You can’t drive your car into Trojena,” he explains. “You would park it outside of the development, and we would enter into the Mirage. Obviously, you can walk. You can use our gondola system or electric vehicles. But we’re not a car resort where you park in front of your hotel or anything like that.”
Other draws up for development are a water park, a lake, and a dam. “We just signed that in January, and so they’re building the dam now. And the steel works for the ski village. We are moving 127,000 tons of steel out there. There are a lot of construction contracts we’re still signing,” Williams adds.
HOSTING THE OLYMPICS
Trojena’s development is expected to be completed a couple of years before the Winter Olympics, which are scheduled to happen in Saudi Arabia in 2029. The area is expected to play a big role as a host for many tournaments. “There’s only a couple of sports we can’t do there, like cross-country skiing – we’re too mountainous for it and it would be logistically a challenge, but most of the sports we’re able to do, so we’re super excited about hosting the games,” he says.
That said, the profile of travellers expected to make a visit to the area is ‘affluent’. “We’re not trying to break records for the most expensive room or anything like that. However, the hotel groups we work with are all luxury,” he says.
LUXURY HOTELS
Among the developments travellers will be able to check into in Trojena is the Ritz-Carlton Reserve, which promises bespoke experiences. The resort will have 60 one-to-four-bedroom villas. Plans also include a spa, swimming pools, and several culinary venues. The best part though? Expansive views across the desert and mountain ranges.
Another hospitality brand that’s tied up with Neom’s Hotel Division is Raffles Trojena, which will be located in the Discover cluster. This area has the Discovery Tower, home to an open-air museum; the Observatory; and the Cosmic Gate, a stargazing camp. The 105-guestroom Raffles resort is planned as a striking ring-shaped building that offers majestic views of its surroundings. It will feature butler service and a number of culinary offerings.
Other hotels to read up about include the W in Lake Village, Anantara in the Water Village, Morgan’s Original, Collective Retreats, and the JW Marriott.