Want to take advantage of Marriott STARS benefits, including a space available room upgrade, complimentary breakfast, a hotel credit, and more? Contact Ford ([email protected]) for more details. He may even be able to help if you already have a stay booked. This is valid for paid stays at BVLGARI, EDITION, Ritz-Carlton, Ritz-Carlton Reserve, and St. Regis.
We know that Saudi Arabia is investing an unprecedented amount of money to boost its tourism industry. A big part of this is the Red Sea Project, which covers 28,000 square kilometers on the west coast of the country, and includes an archipelago of more than 90 natural islands.
Many major luxury hotel groups have committed to building properties here, and we’re slowly starting to see them open. For example, in 2024 we saw the opening of the St. Regis Red Sea Resort and Nujuma, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve Resort, both on private islands. We’ve now started to see the opening of Shura Island, a new type of concept, with 11 resorts on one island.
Let me emphasize that I’m writing about this not because I think everyone should immediately plan a trip to Saudi Arabia, but rather because I find this whole development to be sort of fascinating, and am curious how it evolves.
In this post:
Basics of the new Red Sea EDITION resort
The Red Sea EDITION has opened as of October 12, 2025. This is EDITION’s second property in Saudi Arabia, after the Jeddah EDITION. The Red Sea EDITION features 240 guest rooms, each with one to three bedrooms (of the 240 accommodations, 53 are suites).
When it comes to dining, the resort has The Lobby (an all-day dining space with food and drinks), Central (serving New American cuisine), JIWA Beach Club & Terrace (a beach club with Indonesian chefs), and ANASA (by Saudi chef and entrepreneur Basma Elkhereiji). The property also boasts a wellness area with a full-service spa and gym, a large pool, one kilometer of beachfront, and more.
This property is one of the first to open on Shura Island. While many other resorts are built on private islands, the idea is that Shura Island is one big island with a bunch of resorts. It’s about a 30-minute drive from Red Sea International (RSI), and there’s a bridge connecting it to the main island.
Once complete, Shura Island will boast a total of 11 resorts, ranging from Four Seasons to Rosewood. In addition to the EDITION, the other first two properties to open will be the InterContinental and SLS. Shura Island is intended to be a leisure destination, and will even have an 18-hole golf course, the first built on an island in Saudi Arabia.
I’m very curious to see how this whole development plays out. There will be a ton of hotel inventory, so will this actually become some sort of tourism hotspot, or will it become a ghost island?
The Red Sea EDITION rates & points requirements
With the Red Sea EDITION now open, what are rates like? Rates currently seem to start at ~$500 per night, though get a little more expensive in peak season.
If you are going to book a cash stay at the Red Sea EDITION, I’d highly recommend doing so through the Marriott STARS program. This will score you perks like complimentary breakfast, a $100 food & beverage credit, a room upgrade subject to availability, and more. Ford and his team can help with these bookings, and can be reached at [email protected].
When it comes to redeeming Bonvoy points, I see points redemptions starting at 102,000 points per night. I value Bonvoy points at 0.7 cents each, so that’s not exactly a great use of points.
We’ll see how pricing evolves, since we’re seeing the opening of the first resorts of a completely new island concept. I imagine pricing could evolve significantly over time, either to get higher or lower. One thing is for sure — pricing here is much lower than at Marriott’s private island St. Regis and Ritz-Carlton Reserve properties.
Bottom line
The Red Sea EDITION has opened as of October 2025, as Marriott’s latest resort in the Red Sea region. This is located on Shura Island, an island that will eventually have 11 resorts. The first three of those resorts are opening in the coming months, so I’m curious to see how this all evolves.
What do you make of the new Red Sea EDITION?
Missed opportunity for KSA not to host this week's Gaza Peace Summit here rather than Egypt hosting in Sharm El Sheikh -- I guess because there was a slim chance Bibi would attend.
Note this isn't meant to be political at all, just a observation that it would have been a great opportunity for media attention.
Yes, I agree, it would have been the perfect opportunity to showcase and promote their tourism islands and resorts but KSA projects are all now entirely dependent upon the whim and decision of a notoriously short tempered man - perhaps he was just too engrossed in the latest fantasy life computer game as to pay proper attention as to what's really going on outside his "Kingdom"
“ Let me emphasize that I’m writing about this not because I think everyone should immediately plan a trip to Saudi Arabia, but rather because I find this whole development to be sort of fascinating, and am curious how it evolves.”
This statement is getting tired.
Why even write about them when you have to copy and paste this same statement in every post?
There are many countries that are just as bad, if...
“ Let me emphasize that I’m writing about this not because I think everyone should immediately plan a trip to Saudi Arabia, but rather because I find this whole development to be sort of fascinating, and am curious how it evolves.”
This statement is getting tired.
Why even write about them when you have to copy and paste this same statement in every post?
There are many countries that are just as bad, if not worse, yet this specific qualifier is reserved for SA. Would love to see a similar statement when talking about a certain genocidal state north of Saudi Arabia.
@ Sisyphus -- Contrary to what you might think, the reason I add that disclaimer isn't exclusively (or even primarily) for ethical reasons. There are a couple of reasons you may not be considering.
First, there's no alcohol at these resorts. I realize that might not be an issue in the region, but a lot of people do like to drink when they travel, and that's a non-starter for those people. And if you don't...
@ Sisyphus -- Contrary to what you might think, the reason I add that disclaimer isn't exclusively (or even primarily) for ethical reasons. There are a couple of reasons you may not be considering.
First, there's no alcohol at these resorts. I realize that might not be an issue in the region, but a lot of people do like to drink when they travel, and that's a non-starter for those people. And if you don't believe me, just look at every post I write about Saudi Arabia, and how people say something along the lines of "hard pass, no alcohol."
Second, the reality is that this entire development is in the very early stages. It's hard to know to what extent you're showing up at a constructive site vs. a fully finished product. So I don't want to encourage people to travel somewhere, only to then be disappointed by what the actual state of development may be.
And what is your future policy and attitude about the Saudi regime Ben? Are you going to fly/review Riyad Air (if you are eventually "invited" by Tony Douglas to do so?). Are you prepared to take a holiday to the more relaxed and cosmopitan Jeddah with your family?
@Ben Schlappig
Take a long look in the mirror and ask yourself if you even believe what you just wrote.
I went to Nujuma and loved it. Sure there's no alcohol but the service was top notch and rooms were quite nice (esp compared to STR or Ritz Maldives). I would go back there, but for a similar cash price I'm not sure I'd pick this EDITION given it's ~3x the size roomwise.
I went to St R. as Nujuma was only open to staff working at the Red Sea projects (soft opening). It was completely finished and really lovely. Similar to you, the staff were excellent.
The snorkelling whilst expensive was amazing too.
Literally who is visiting this resort? It must entirely be people based in KSA.
Well, after the comedy festival, perhaps, Dave wants to go to the beach, ya know, there aren't great 'beaches' in Ohio, after all...