The city’s assets explained to 41 media from the land of the tsars
Will the city of Ouarzazate in turn have its share of the Russian market? If the city of Agadir and Marrakech remain the first and second requested destinations, the city of Ouarzazate receives a delegation of Russian journalists for the first time. An operation organized by the ONMT Russia as part of a promotional visit to several Moroccan destinations. 41 Russian media made a trip to Ouarzazate on the 18th and 19th before leaving to explore other cities. “This trip dedicated to 41 guests from the professional press, general public and Russian luxury media, is an opportunity for tourism professionals and the authorities of Ouarzazate to highlight the great potential of “the dream destination”, Ouarzazate, through a rich program including architectural heritage (ksar of Ait Benhaddou and Kasbah of Taourirt of Ouarzazate), cinematographic activity (studios and cinema museum), tourism business (congress center)”, underlines the side of the provincial council of Ouarzazate.
Potentialities of the Russian market
With 146.3 million inhabitants in 2015 (according to official Russian figures), the country constitutes the 9th national market in the world. The Russian economy is characterized by the importance of hydrocarbon resources (second world producer of gas and oil in 2013) and the country’s mineral and natural wealth (coal, gold, nickel, cobalt, diamonds, wood, etc.). The export of these natural resources represents more than two thirds of Russian exports. The service sectors (telecommunications, finance, distribution) have experienced significant growth over the last decade. Note that Russia experienced average growth of 7% per year from 2000 to 2008. It was hit hard by the economic and financial crisis of 2008, with a recession of almost -8% in 2009. The country returned to growth (around 4% per year) in 2010 and 2011 thanks to the good performance of oil prices and the increase in internal demand. The slowdown that began in 2012 was confirmed in 2013 (growth of only 1.3%) and intensified in 2014 (growth of 0.6%). Gross net income and gross domestic product per capita stood at US$13,210 and US$12,735 respectively in 2014, with an unemployment rate of 5.8% and an inflation rate of 9.8% in 2015, according to the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
Regarding the characteristics of Russian outbound tourism, it should be noted that the number of departures abroad has experienced a double-digit increase since it went from 26 million 693 thousand in 2010 to 50 million 428 thousand in 2014, an average increase of more than 22% over the entire period, knowing that the progression was more significant until 2013 when the number of departures reached 53 million 453 thousand, before dropping to 50 million 428 thousand in 2014.
The expenditure of Russian tourists, whose average length of stay abroad is 12 days with a preference for seaside resorts, high-end hotels and the purchase of luxury products, has seen a considerable evolution between 2010 (30 billion 169 million US dollars) and 2014 (55 billion 383 million US dollars), the average expenditure per tourist is almost 1,100 US dollars.
Key figures from Russian travel
In terms of spending, according to Global Blue, in 2014 Russian customers were the second highest spending nationality after China despite a reduction in spending. In addition, 48% of Russians consider shopping essential during their vacation and their tax-free purchases represented €1,241 per day per store in 2014. 29% of Russians prefer to travel as a couple without children and 20% choose to travel with their family. 65% travel for leisure, 12% for business and 23% for a combination of the two. The average length of stay for Russians is 12 nights, which they spend in 2 to 3 different hotels. The average length of stay per hotel is 2-4 nights for 48% of Russians and 4-6 nights for 27% of them. 37% of Russians book their trips 1 to 2 months in advance and 28% 3 to 5 months in advance. 45% consider recommendations from friends in their choice of destination.
Source: http://jourhui.ma/economie/marche-touristique-russe-ouarzazate-lance-son-offensive
