Religious tourism played a central role in the region’s nineteenth-century economy (until the arrival of Texas oilmen in the 1930s, Mecca was almost entirely dependent on visiting pilgrims). But the numbers of visitors began to rise sharply after the city fell under the control of the Saudi royal family in 1924.
宗教旅游在该地区19世纪经济中发挥了核心作用（直到20世纪30年代德克萨斯石油工人到来之前，麦加几乎完全依赖来访的朝圣者）。但1924年该市落入沙特皇室控制后朝圣者数量开始急剧上升。