Saudi Arabia’s nationwide airline Saudia has revealed a brand new subscription service that lets travellers e book a bundle of home flights at fastened, lower-than-usual costs. But there’s a catch: you’ll have to decide to a single route for the whole yr.
The launch comes amid a surge in home air travel across the kingdom, fuelled by main tourism seasons and nationwide occasions comparable to Riyadh Season, Jeddah Season and the ever-growing calendar of live shows, festivals and sports activities fixtures.
Under the scheme, fliers choose a metropolis pair – for instance Riyadh and Jeddah or Dammam and Abha – then purchase a bundle of 8, 16 or 24 one-way economic system flights prematurely at low cost costs. A one-way reserving makes use of a single journey from the allowance, whereas a spherical journey makes use of two.
For instance, eight journeys a yr between Riyadh and Jeddah would value SAR2,549 ($680) when paid yearly, whereas 24 journeys would value SAR6,549 ($1,746) — slicing the worth per one-way flight to only SAR319 ($85) and SAR273 ($73) respectively.
That compares to typical Guest Basic fares on the identical route, which may fluctuate between SAR350 ($93) and SAR600 ($160), relying on demand, timing and season.
Once activated, the pass is legitimate for 12 months, and passengers can e book flights as much as three days earlier than departure. Annual subscriptions will be paid quarterly or upfront for the yr, with promotional costs ranging from SAR349 ($93) each three months — though airport taxes aren’t included and are charged individually at checkout.
Saudia says travellers can cancel their subscription inside the first seven days offered no ticket has been issued and may later change or cancel flights, with refunded values added again to their Flight Pass account. Change charges begin at SAR250 ($67) plus VAT, whereas cancellations are SAR400 ($107) plus VAT.
The pass covers most of Saudia’s home community, with a handful of exceptions together with Dawadmi, Neom, Rafha and Red Sea airports. Subscriptions have to be bought by the airline’s Flight Pass web site, with funds accepted by way of Visa, Mastercard or American Express.
Saudia’s transfer mirrors a wider shift in aviation as airways experiment with subscriptions to easy out demand on standard routes. In the US, Alaska Airlines made headlines in 2022 with its Flight Pass on West Coast routes, providing between six and 24 flights per yr for a set month-to-month payment — with price range airline JetBlue and Frontier additionally beforehand revealing comparable offers.
In Europe, Wizz Air in the meantime presents a MultiPass, a month-to-month plan that bundles one round-trip flight (plus optionally available extras like seat choice or baggage) at a flat fee, locking in fares even when costs surge on standard metropolis pairs.