Expo 2030 Riyadh occupies a six-million-square-metre site in northern Riyadh, adjacent to King Salman International Airport. The masterplan was finalised in 2024 and approved by the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) in early 2025. Main civil works are now entering procurement, with the site scheduled to open on 1 October 2030 and close on 31 March 2031.
Location and connectivity
The site sits in the King Salman Park district, roughly 25km north of central Riyadh. Three connectivity corridors anchor visitor flow into the venue:
- King Salman International Airport, expected to be operational at expanded capacity by 2030, sits immediately adjacent. The airport-to-site distance is about 5km, against 18km between Dubai 2020 and DXB and roughly 35km between Osaka 2025 and Kansai International.
- Riyadh Metro extensions and dedicated Expo bus rapid transit corridors are programmed to link the site to central Riyadh, the diplomatic quarter and Diriyah.
- Highway access via the existing northern ring road, with new on-and-off ramps planned for visitor coach and shuttle traffic.
Theme and thematic districts
The official theme is Foresight for Tomorrow. The masterplan organises the site into thematic districts that translate this theme into spatial form:
- A Different Tomorrow district, oriented around social innovation, education and human development.
- A Climate of Possibility district, oriented around sustainability, resource technology and energy transition.
- A Prosperous Tomorrow district, oriented around economic transformation, urban innovation and new industries.
Country pavilions are distributed across these districts rather than clustered in a single zone, so that each thematic neighbourhood combines national pavilions, Saudi institutional pavilions and partner exhibits side by side.
Public realm and operational facilities
Beyond pavilions, the masterplan allocates substantial area to public realm – shaded promenades, water features, gardens, food and retail concourses and event venues for nightly programming during the six-month run. Operational facilities include the Expo House (administration), media and broadcast centre, accreditation and security perimeter, visitor reception zones and back-of-house logistics yards positioned to keep service traffic separate from visitor flows.
Scale in context
At six million square metres, Expo 2030 Riyadh is roughly 35 per cent larger than the Dubai 2020 site (4.38 km²) and almost four times the size of Osaka 2025 (about 1.55 km²). Visitor capacity is sized for an expected 40 million visits across the six-month run.
Legacy plan
Saudi authorities have said the Expo site will not be dismantled at closure. Following the 31 March 2031 closing date, the masterplan transitions the site into a permanent district with a planned long-term population of 40,000–50,000 residents, with retained pavilions, a university campus, residential neighbourhoods and a museum quarter. This approach mirrors the post-Expo strategies adopted at Shanghai 2010 and Dubai 2020, where significant portions of the site were preserved as permanent urban districts.
For the procurement structure that delivers the masterplan, see the Tender & Procurement Guide. For the construction calendar, see the Timeline. For pavilion participation by country, see the Countries directory.