A total of 400,000 Saudis spent the mid-term break abroad, with 270,000 choosing Dubai as their tourist destination.

Locally, Makkah received the most visitors who had arrived for Umrah, with the hotel occupancy rate at 90 percent during the nine-day period.

Short vacations are the best time for families to travel because half the summer vacation falls in Ramadan, said Waleed Al-Subaiei, vice-chairman of the travel and tourism committee at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Dubai captured the most Saudi tourists because of its proximity and availability of various facilities which suit local tastes and traditions, he said.