The kingdom is stepping up its efforts to attract guests from the Middle Kingdom, who have been visa-exempt since June. The first results are being felt, with an increase of 300% in one year. But there is still so much to do…
Multiplyed by four. The growth rate between 2015 and 2016 in the number of Chinese tourists visiting the Shereef kingdom is impressive. In absolute terms, however, the Morocco destination comes a long way: the number of visitors from China stood at 42,000 in 2016. However, the performance remains admirable, which earned the kingdom the title of Best Potential Destination 2016, a prize awarded in January by theGlobal Times,an influential daily newspaper from the Middle Kingdom.
“This dynamic constitutes one of the first results of a strategy specific to the Chinese market that we have implemented and which benefits from the support of the highest authorities in the country,” explains Abderrafie Zouiten, director general of the Moroccan National Tourism Office (ONMT). Indeed, during Mohammed VI’s trip to Beijing in May 2016, the tourism sector had a prominent place in the cooperation agreements.
Abolition of visas
During this state visit, in addition to the signing of a memorandum of understanding linking the tourism ministries of the two countries, the king announced the abolition of entry visas to Morocco for Chinese nationals. “The effects of this political decision – which came into force on June 1, 2016 – were immediately felt,” says the head of the ONMT. If, during the first five months of the year, we received an average of 600 Chinese tourists per month, this figure increased to 4,000 during the second quarter, and in December, Morocco received 7,000 visitors from China. »And the best is yet to come: the ONMT aims to reach the threshold of 100,000 Chinese guests by the end of this year
To achieve this objective, an entire marketing plan for this market is being deployed. In January, Marrakech welcomed a delegation made up of around twenty travel agents from the Shanghai region, as well as the public tour operator China International Travel Service (CITS), for a discovery of the tourist attractions of the Ocher City. On the other hand, the Emirati airline Etihad Airways has partnered with ONMT and tour operator Beijing Yougo World International Travel Service Co. Ltd (Uniway) as part of its “1,000 Chinese Visitors to Morocco” campaign, which aims to transport 1,000 travelers from China to Morocco between February and June 2017.
“We will launch, from the end of March, another campaign with Air France, which will inaugurate a direct line between Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle and Marrakech, knowing that the French company also provides 80 weekly flights from China,” Abderrafie Zouiten tells us.
90% of trips to Asia
And if Morocco is banking so much on its promotion in China, it is obviously because it hopes to have its share of the pie in this gigantic market, since 120 million nationals of this country traveled abroad in 2015 (including 90% to Asian destinations). Better yet, tourists from the Middle Kingdom are among the best customers in the world, with travel spending estimated at $215 billion (€200 billion). In Morocco, the estimated budget of Chinese tourists, who stay on average six to eight days, amounts to 1,303 dirhams per night (119 euros). For comparison, European visitors only pay 800 dirhams.
Cultural tourism
“The Chinese are looking for cultural tourism. He is very attracted to countries with historical heritage and rich and diverse nature,” explains Hayat Jabrane, founder of Goal Voyages, an agency that has been working in this market for more than ten years. The tour operator, who is also secretary general of the National Tourism Confederation, believes that there is nevertheless a lot to do to improve Morocco’s attractiveness to the Chinese: “We therefore need guides, documentation and staff who speak Mandarin in the airports. »
