Amajor plan to exploit the natural beauty of the Riyadh area and enhance it with exotic ingredients such as snow, wildlife and recreational, edutainment and adventure magnets is being offered up for development to private investors by the High Commission for Arriyadh Development, in a bid to unfold a world of family entertainment for Saudis as well as GCC residents.

Towards this end, a massive entertainment park is taking shape about 80 km from central Riyadh and about 35 km from King Khalid International Airport.
The Thumamah Park as it is known will be set among the Armah mountains and Thumamahh valleys, which already boast a unique natural ecosystem – 195 plant species, four mammal classes, 148 bird species, and 21 reptile and insect species – that has been preserved for the past two decades.
It will have as its neighbours the Janadriyah Equestrian Club and other parks spread along Thumamah Road, which are presently used as picnic and desert camping sports, due to its scenic surroundings and proximity to the city.
Based on extensive studies that it has conducted, the High Commission for Arriyadh Development envisions the Thumamah Park to be one of the most important channels for tourist, recreational and cultural investment in the city.
“The project is expected to attract an investment of up to SR2.5 billion ($667 million, and 2.4 million visitors annually, while providing more than 3,000 job opportunities,” says Tariq Al Faris, director of urban area management at the Higher Commission for Arriyadh Development.
According to Al Faris, in line with the natural setting, the park has been carefully masterplanned, with the density of attractions graded from south to north (most vulnerable) to 14 elements that have been divided into eight investment packages, following a careful economic and financial analysis of the development (see Figure 1).
Already, the project has attracted private sector participation with the first phase of the camps component – comprising 50 units of various sizes and associated facilities – up and running to kick-start the project. In addition, a contract has been signed with the Saudi Aviation Club while the King Khalid Centre for Wildlife Research is already operational.
The Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA), the executive arm of the High Commission, has recently opened up the first package to investors.
The site is currently accessible via a local road network, which comprises modern dual-carriageways. A main gate as well as the administration offices have been constructed and the entire site has been fenced.  The site is also served by a number of deep water-wells, 20 MW power plant, major power transmission lines as well as a number of towers that ensure a mobile communication network.
Among the various infrastructure requirements of the project are water purification and treatment stations, sewerage and public irrigation network, garbage disposal stations, in addition to a transformer station and power transmission lines as well as an extensive network within the park.
The ADA is developing the Thumamah Park with the following objectives in mind:
• Conservation of the natural assets of the park.
• Education of visitors on the significance of the natural and cultural heritage resources in the park.
• Provision of recreation opportunities for visitors.
• Park development in partnership with the private sector and other interests.
• Providing jobs, opportunities and the development of human resources in the kingdom.

Masterplan
The  masterplan for Thumamah Park  – based on ideas and concepts evolved over the past two decades since the park was created – is divided into the following zones:
• Zone 1: a low-use ‘nature reserve’ in the northern half, where only limited camping and nature interpretation will be permitted;
• Zone 2: a more active recreation area in the southern half, including superstructure components for the main visitor centre, the adventure sports and recreation, maintenance, botanical and safari centres;
• Zone 3: a ‘high energy’ activity area featuring the Recreation City in the extreme southern reaches of the park;
• Zone 4: two sub-zones in which service and infrastructure facilities would be located, to support the operation and maintenance of the Park. Zone 4 (a) would be situated unobtrusively within the former Royal Farm area, and Zone 4 (b) within the recreation city;
• Zone 5: Protected desert areas, serving as a land bank for yet-to-be allocated future recreation use.

Zone 1 – Nature Reserve
Given the sensitive environment, high priority has been placed on achieving the education, conservation and preservation objectives. Hence this zone will have a limited number of campsites as well as road access.
This zone includes the Nature Interpretation Centre (museum) which is located near the Urumah Escarpment, offering opportunities for interesting interpretive trails, while being within easy reach of a prehistoric village that was discovered nearby. The 2,100 sq m building has been designed in conformity with the mountain background nature. The display features geology, artefacts, and various natural formations, in addition to a hall, restaurant, and cafe.
This area is also ideally suited as a terminus for the cable car that will connect it with the proposed botanical garden near the southern promontory of the Kushm Thumamah.
The 145 sq km desert campsites will feature about 300 camps. A camping centre, to serve the visitors to campsites in terms of ticketing, provisions and other services, is centrally located along the main spine road of the nature reserve, in the already lush environment of the former dairy farm.

Zone 2: Recreation area
A number of service and leisure facilities are proposed for this zone, including:
• The main visitors’ centre located centrally and prominently on a hill within the park. This major 8,850 sq m service area will feature an information centre, an exhibition hall, a festival tent, a petting zoo, a restaurant, a mosque and various visitor services such as a library, shops, walkways and viewpoints.
• Safari park, a 20 million sq m enclosed but generally natural environment featuring a distinctive topography and containing approximately 1,000 Arabian and African species of fauna.   There are special lanes for access and strolling, with a number of view decks on raised locations for better viewing.  
• A Safari lodge, strategically and unobtrusively placed within an elevated geological feature overlooking the park. It will luxury accommodation within a natural environment with an “African theme”.  It features 24 chalets spread over 3,000 sq m. The lodge would be arranged with African wooden ‘cottages’, around a central reception and restaurant, overlooking a waterhole in the plains;
• A botanical garden covering an area of 4 million sq m to the north of the visitors’ centre, near the base of the Urumah escarpment the foot of Armah mountains (Khashm Thumamahh). It will include a larger number of plants of the kingdom’s various ecological environments and similar plants from other countries of the world as well as a botanical centre, a central oasis, theme gardens, a research building, ethnobotanical and medicinal plant displays, a sound and light show and more. Various nodes and displays would be connected by a road-based tram system. It will also have a cable car station. 
• The recreation centre, a building complex within an existing horticultural area on the Royal Farm, with a major swimming pool, a restaurant, several indoor recreation components such as a fitness centre, table games, management offices and associated service amenities. It will also include a mosque, a festival tent and ticketing counters, football fields, basketball, volleyball and tennis courts, and other components.
• A 2 sq km adventure centre featuring various motor sports facilities such as a motor race track, a rally race track, a go-kart track, a moto-cross track, a driver training centre, quad bike rentals and other vehicle-based amenities. It will also offer other adventure sports such as camel and horseback riding, a climbing and abseiling wall, perhaps a mountain bike trail.
• A daily family camping zone, with up to 450 camp and picnic sites divided into 25 groups, spreading over a total area of 15 million sq m to south west of the park. A ‘Camping Centre’, strategically placed at the entrance to the zone, would cater to campers’ needs, It is based on the model of Asir National Park, where this concept has been quite successful.  This area will be provided with all necessary services for an occupancy density higher than the other land camps.
• The Saudi Aviation Centre, at Thumamah airport, will commence operations in the near future. It occupies an area of 300 hectares encompassing the entire airstrip, associated aprons, and the former Royal Palace and Royal Guard Housing. Airplane hangars, passenger station, maintenance centre and administrative building will soon be developed. It will also include staff accommodation, entertainment club, an aviation school, aviation training and aerial show fields over the 2.9 million sq m complex. Upon full development, the aviation centre will be the hub of private aviation in Saudi Arabia.
Zone 3: Recreation City
The site is the most attractive and largest location covering an area of 22 million sq m which includes the following entertainment and accommodation facilities:
• Theme Park: the main area of the recreation city, Located at the end of the road from the city main entrance, it includes children’s, adults’ and family playgrounds.
• Aqua Park: Designed to be the largest aqua playground in Riyadh, it is located at the western part of the recreation city and connected to the amusement city.  It includes children and kids playgrounds consisting of: boat sailing, water tube skating as well as exciting aqua games such as artificial wave surfing, water surface skating.
• Snow World: Providing a world of snow, it includes a closed hall for ice games, and a 30-m-high skating slope and includes a hall exhibiting ice life, and the lifestyle in snowy areas including the buildings.
• Entertainment Street: Extending along a 1-km road, it includes a number of small entertainment activities, stores, competitions, cafes, and various restaurants. Ornate buildings and a variety of night activities characterise the area.
• Edutainment Theatre: Comprising a theatre and its outer annexes, this area concentrates on environmental, educational and entertainment shows
• Resorts: The eastern part of the city will feature modern resorts consisting of chalets, and motels, built to complement the beauty of the surrounding Armah Mountains.
• Escarpment activity centre: Located at the foot of Armah mountains where a hiking centre can be established, this area will include a tower with a restaurant overlooking the whole entertainment city.
• Access and roads: the entertainment city has been designed in a way to include all services and facilities as well as provide easy access to any facility or component.  All facilities are linked with cable cars and the city also includes major car parks.

Zone 4:  Maintenance
 Two maintenance centres will be established in the park: one in the Royal Farm area and the other in the Recreation City. They are designed to house the necessary storage, warehousing, industrial and servicing requirements. Such a centralised concept is considered most efficient and economical, says Al Faris
The first, just north of the King Khalid Wildlife Research Complex, will be built over a 20-hectare area close to proposed plant nursery, is well hidden from view and is contiguous to an existing water well. The nursery will cater for the propagation of trees, shrubs and cacti, mainly for the Safari park, but also for the park as a whole. A greenhouse and an office/maintenance facility will be part of this compound, covering about 30 hectares.
The second maintenance centre, while performing similar functions is specifically aimed at serving the intensive facilities within the Recreation City.
A most complementary facility in this zone is the well-established King Khalid Wildlife Research Centre that has occupied parts of the Royal Farm for some 18 years. This facility will be further expanded to cover a total of 708 hectares, including enclosures, research laboratories, a visitor centre, and veterinary facilities. 

Zone 5: Protected desert areas
This zone consists of a land reserve, unallocated space, buffer zones and expansion areas to be assigned as the park is developed over the next 10 to 20 years. In addition, broad zones designated as “protected desert” have been reserved as nature regeneration and environmental protection areas, as well as buffer zones.

Phasing
In developing the project, the High Commission intends to keep construction cost as low as possible “at least for the start until profitability is proved,” says Al Faris. “Initially elements that require the construction of a minimum number of public facilities will be erected. As a general strategy, infrastructure that can be easily accessed will be built first.  Thus, the development of Thumamah Park will progress from the perimeter towards the centre.  However, those facilities that will possibly be more profitable and easier to develop and can be developed in stages, will be built first.
The Recreation City is a major project with its own timetable. It could be developed in tune with the park, or entirely independently.
“It is designed as a system of leisure amenities appealing to the entire cross-section of the population and requires wide transportation arteries, large parking areas, and substantial logistics and maintenance support facilities,” explains Al Faris. “However, due to the high construction costs, and to hedge against risk on investment, private sector entrepreneur(s) will be called upon to invest and develop incrementally. Hence, it is likely that the Recreation City will be developed from the main entrance inward.”
“Projects such as the Thumamah Park are increasingly being developed in the Gulf region through the participation of the public and private sectors, where the latter provides the basic infrastructure at the site and other incentives to private investors to make the investment opportunity attractive and less risky for the private sector,” Al Faris points out.
“Thumamah Park presents an attractive investment opportunity as it offers some unique features and incentives,” he concludes.