Saudi mega-development Neom has revealed the Norlana town wrapped around a marina on the Gulf of Aqaba designed by architecture studio 10 Design.

Planned for 3,000 residents, the town will be built as part of a cluster of developments being planned on the Gulf of Aqaba in the northwest of Saudi Arabia as part of Neom.

The coastal town will be designed by architecture studio 10 Design with a focus on sport.

Along with marina, the development will include an 18-hole golf course, equestrian club and tennis club.

The development's 700 apartments and two hotels will be arranged around a 120-berth marina.

"Historically settlements have been founded by water, and so the heart of Norlana is the marina," said 10 Design managing principal Chris Jones.

"It's this bowl of vibrancy from which you can migrate to the different communities."

The marina will be surrounded by stacked blocks featuring numerous cantilevers, which the architect designed to merge into the surrounding mountains.

"When you arrive, coming in by water along the Gulf of Aqaba, you see buildings that appear to be growing out of the mountains," said 10 Design architect Rochana Verma.

"You start to see that the hillsides are actually buildings and that the fingers on the beach are actually villas," added Jones.

"Then you are drawn to the marinas and the [plaza and the public realm and the bustle of people right down to the water's edge."

Norlana is the ninth region announced as part of the mega-development and joins four other tourism destinations planned to be built in the Gulf of Aqaba as part of Neom.

Along with Norlana, Utamo is described as a "theatre of the future", Leyja is a collection of three luxury hotels, Epicon is a pair of jagged skyscrapers and Siranna is a hotel made of hexagonal pillars.

The projects form part of Neom, which is one of the world's largest and most controversial developments and includes plans for a 170-kilometre-long city called The Line.

Neom has been criticised on human rights grounds, including by human rights organisation ALQST which reported that three men were sentenced to death after being "forcibly evicted" from the Neom site.

Last year experts from the UN Human Rights Council expressed "alarm" over the imminent executions. Saudi Arabia responded to the UN by denying abuses had taken place.

The photographs and video are courtesy of Neom.