red sea project shares six-year progress on shura island by foster & partners

Red Sea Project celebrates six-year progress

The Red Sea Project, a luxury tourism development in Saudi Arabia, celebrates its six years of construction progress. Originally introduced as part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, the project has released a new video showcasing the updates on its popular destinations, including three hotels and an international airport. Among the hotels is the Shura Island also known as the Coral Bloom concept designed by Foster + Partners.

‘The Shura Island is one of the most iconic projects around the world,’ shares Mohammed Khayat, Associate Project Director at Red Sea Global. ‘We are live on 15 of the 17 assets and we’re due to complete in quarter four of 2024,’ mentions Murray Vetch, Executive Projects Director at Red Sea Global.

progress is being made on the Coral Bloom resort | all images courtesy Red Sea Global

Shura Island design concept by Foster + Partners

The Shura Island design concept is known as Coral Bloom designed by Foster + Partners (find more here), because of how harmoniously it integrates with its pristine natural surroundings. Inspired by the local environment, the Shura hotels offer distinctive villas and tailor-made experiences, catering to a diverse range of guests. The buildings themselves are strategically planned to serve as natural defenses against erosion, ensuring the island’s protection. Moreover, thoughtful landscaping efforts have resulted in the creation of new habitats, enriching the island’s natural state.

The proposal, which was presented by the Red Sea Development Company (find more here), outlines designs for the multiple hotels immersed into the landscape to effectively form part of the sweeping dunes. Foster + Partners’ design also sees new beaches created on the dolphin-shaped island along with a new lagoon.

drone view of the Shura Island | image: screenshot, Six Years of Progress at The Red Sea, courtesy Red Sea Global

focusing on sustainability

According to the recently unveiled video by Red Sea, the long-awaited Saudi Arabia project is finally coming to life with the first developments set to welcome guests in the last months of 2023. ‘We’ve constantly got stuff on the go and new context is being awarded every week. It’s just a really exciting development to be part of,’ mentions Murray Vetch.

‘We’ve got a big sustainability drive across the development that’s led us to look at different construction techniques. We are incorporating off-site manufacturing wherever we can. For example, we are using recast panels to help us reduce the number of laborers on the site and to help us control the quality of the project, and to reduce waste,’ says Mohammed Khayat. ‘The Red Sea teams are pioneers in driving this sustainability approach. Everybody just accepts it as a way of life and we’re constantly looking at ways to improve. It’s an ongoing process of educating ourselves and the entire team,’ adds Vetch.

construction process on the Shura Island | image: screenshot, Six Years of Progress at The Red Sea, courtesy Red Sea Global

‘we’ve constantly got stuff on the go,’ shares Murray Vetch | image: screenshot, Six Years of Progress at The Red Sea, courtesy Red Sea Global

‘we’ve got a big sustainability drive across the development,’ Mohammed Khayat adds | image: screenshot, Six Years of Progress at The Red Sea, courtesy Red Sea Global