Delta Air Lines this week announced that it’s pinning a new destination on its global map, making it far easier to reach one Middle Eastern country.
Beginning in October 2026, Delta will inaugurate nonstop service between its main hub, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), and King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (RUH). This will mark the first time that a U.S. carrier will fly directly to Saudi Arabia.
“Delta’s new nonstop flights mark a significant milestone in strengthening global connectivity between our nations and will open new doors for tourism and cultural exchange,” His Excellency Ahmed Al-Khateeb, minister of tourism for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, stated in a press release.
The flight will operate three times weekly on Delta’s Airbus A350-900, featuring four classes of service: Delta One (with lie-flat seats and chef-curated menus), Delta Premium Select (with wider seats and a deeper recline), Delta Comfort (with extra legroom), and Delta’s main cabin.
Why Saudi Arabia, and why now
Laura Dannen Redman, Afar’s editor at large, who has covered the destination previously, noted that “Delta is already codesharing with Saudia, Saudi Arabia’s perfectly lovely flag carrier, but to introduce its own nonstop flight to Riyadh signals optimism about travel to the region in 2026 and beyond. It’s a way of saying, ‘We expect American travelers will want to visit Saudi Arabia next year, and we want to give them a familiar airline to take that possibly nerve-racking first step.’”
Riyadh also offers a strategic gateway for Delta; it’s a central hub for connecting to destinations across the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia, as well as a business and tourism center undergoing rapid transformation.
That transformation is at the heart of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, an ambitious plan to diversify the nation’s economy and boost tourism. Long known as one of the world’s most closed-off destinations, the kingdom began issuing tourist visas in 2019 and has since invested heavily in cultural projects and luxury developments, including the Red Sea resort region and the desert city of AlUla.
Miraval is among the new resorts redefining Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea region.
Courtesy of Miraval Resorts & Spas
Dannen Redman added that compared to the travel time that is needed to connect through Dubai in the United Arab Emirates or Doha in Qatar, this direct flight reduces the transit time by five hours or more. It also supports travel to the Red Sea, where numerous five-star hotels are opening (Miraval just announced its first international property in the Red Sea, and in 2025 alone, Edition Hotels, InterContinental, and Raffles, among others, all opened new outposts there), yet there are few ways to get there.
“When I went in 2024, I took a flight to Doha, then a connection to AlUla, then a five-hour car ride and an hour-long boat to get even close to those hotels and resorts,” Dannen Redman says.
Richard Krieger, director at Sky Vacations, a Michigan-based tour operator, told Afar that over the past two years, his company “has seen a substantial surge in inquiries and bookings to Saudi Arabia,” and added his clients have already been asking for details about the new flight path and possible trips.
“With Delta’s new flight connecting the U.S. directly to Riyadh, visiting Saudi Arabia will be easier and more accessible, helping to define the next chapter in Saudi tourism,” Krieger says.
Riyadh may be best known as Saudi Arabia’s business and political capital, but it’s also quietly becoming one of the most interesting cities in the Middle East to explore. Visitors can start in Diriyah, the UNESCO-recognized birthplace of the Saudi state, where traditional mud-brick buildings and narrow alleys have been carefully restored and reopened as restaurants, cafés, and museums. In the city center, the National Museum offers a thoughtful introduction to Saudi history, while the Souq Al Zal—filled with carpets, incense, and antiques—immerses visitors in the sensory bustle of a traditional Arabian market. For a break from the bustle, locals head to the Edge of the World, a dramatic escarpment about an hour’s drive from downtown that drops into an endless stretch of desert.
Saudi Arabia is investing heavily in tourism infrastructure, including in areas like the Neom Nature Reserve.
Photo by Neom/Unsplash
Like the Red Sea, Wadi Safar, located in Diriyah on the outskirts of Riyadh, is also poised to become an oasis of luxury resorts. The area will soon welcome new hotels from Six Senses, Aman, Faena, Montage, and Oberoi; the 60-villa Oberoi, Wadi Safar, opening in October 2026, will be the first property to open in this newly envisioned enclave. It will have a signature Indian restaurant by renowned chef Rohit Ghai, a spa with hammams, and an infinity pool. Wadi Safar will also be home to an equestrian center and a polo club, wellness retreats, and cultural venues.
For travelers, the new Delta flight route represents a more direct bridge to one of the world’s most talked-about destinations of late—both for its cultural renaissance and for its controversies and complexities. While Riyadh boasts a growing contemporary art scene, a collection of new design-forward hotels, and access to striking desert landscapes, Saudi Arabia’s restrictive social laws and human-rights record continue to draw scrutiny.
“[Visiting Saudi is] a personal decision, one that I [recently] addressed,” says Dannen Redman. “I believe in cultural diplomacy and that a country’s people are not the same as their politicians. I encourage travelers to spend thoughtfully, in local businesses and [with local] tour operators, wherever possible.”
