JEDDAH, 31 July 2007 — Mersal Village, with the Kingdom’s biggest theme park called the Jungle Land, in northeast Jeddah has been getting a great number of vacationers due to its various rides and attractions that include a circus, a “well of death” and an “animal kingdom”.
The turnout this time has been overwhelmingly great, with as many as 500,000 visitors from across the city, elsewhere in the Kingdom and the GCC expected to enjoy various activities at the village.
“The 250,000 square meter village has been transformed into a vacation spot for the ongoing Jeddah Summer Festival,” Haytham A. Nassier, chairman, Mersal Village, told the media on Sunday night.
“We are on an expansion course with qualitative changes under way for promoting domestic tourism with the support of Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal and Jeddah Gov. Prince Mishaal ibn Majed,” Nassier said.
The village, with its inventory of rides for children and attractions for families, was established eight years ago and has become a great asset to the Western Province and the rest of the Kingdom because of its vast potential for economic and tourist development.
“We want to see the theme park emerging as one of the Middle East-Gulf region’s premier tourist attractions,” Nassier said. “The changes we are bringing about are part of an in-depth study we conducted. We are converting our entity into a SR300-million joint stock company with its headquarters in Jeddah. “Thirty percent of the capital will be raised through an initial public offering (IPO),” Nassier said.
This year’s programs for families and children at the village include a jump from a frightening height by a Czech, claimed to be the first of its kind here. There is also a circus show being performed by Brazilian acrobats at an air-conditioned tent daily.
“I was thrilled to see the adventurous jump. I was really frightened,” Emad Al-Zahrani, a young Saudi boy, remarked.
“The trapeze and other circus acts performed by the acrobats were interesting,” Sara Hafiz, a Saudi girl, said. “The whole circus-like acts, especially by clowns, were entertaining,” she added.
As part of the festival, Nassier said, the village is offering several prizes to visitors including a car at a weekly draw and gold coins at a daily draw.
