When it comes to the most expensive giga projects of all time, Saudi Arabia’s $1.5 trillion Neom City takes the cake. In fact, even its separate projects are worthy of winning the title individually. As is the case with Trojena, the year-round ski village nestled between the picturesque mountains of the Tabuk region, it is ballooning not only in expectations and execution (33 times the size of New York City), but now even in budgets. According to a report by The Wall Street Journal, the price of Saudi Crown Prince MBS’s dream projects keeps rising, and this includes Trojena.
The stellar ski resort that’s well underway is now projecting a cost that has doubled over two years to $38 billion as of October, according to Neom documents. Master-planned by the German studio LAVA, Trojena has already roped in Saudi Arabia’s first W Hotel and a JW Marriott property, in addition to Chedi Trojena. With 36 km of snow year-round, Trojena is set to host the 2029 Asian Winter Games, and the prestigious 2030 Winter Olympics, but at an exceptionally high cost that with passing time will only escalate. In comparison, for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, the Beijing Olympic Village was built at a cost of $3.12 billion.
Going by this, Trojena is already costing 11 times more than the Beijing Olympic Village, which also comprised a complex of high-rise apartments spread across 7,100,000 sq ft of land and accommodation for over 16,000 athletes. It sounds like they did a fantastic job without splurging an unheard-of amount. While Beijing’s Olympic Green has been transformed into a residential area after the Olympics, Trojena will continue to reign supreme as the ski capital of the Kingdom as it does more than host events.
The world’s first “vertical ski village,” boasting snowmaking machines, will comprise six districts with 450 slope residences, 1,000 hotel rooms, ultra-luxury family and wellness resorts, and a wide range of retail stores and restaurants. It is only a matter of time before the world gets a chance to enjoy the above firsthand as the Trojena development is expected to be completed in 2026.
It has won a bid to host the 2029 Asian Winter Games at the magnificent mountain resort in Neom City. There are high chances of Saudi Arabia emerging as the host of the Winter Olympics to be held in 2030, owing to the terrific Trojena and everything it offers.