From one year to the next, the amount of travel expenses abroad by Moroccans increases at a sustained rate which has an increasingly negative impact on the balance of the travel balance.

Thus, in 2018, Moroccans spent 18.9 billion dirhams compared to 17.35 billion dirhams in 2017 and 14.35 billion dirhams in 2016.

Should we conclude that these increasing expenses are causing a shortfall in revenue for our tourist operators and our economy?

A night in Morocco at the same price as abroad

According to Fouzi Zemrani, vice-president of the CNT, this development can be explained by growing competition from destinations near or far such as Spain, Turkey, and even Asia.

« In summer, the majority of nationals go to the seaside resorts of the North such as Martil, Tamuda Bay (M’diq-Fnideq) and Saidia. Those of Agadir and Taghazout are also very popular.

« Others go to Essaouira and increasingly to Marrakech, which has recently become a summer destination thanks to its numerous wave pools and the unique Jamaa El Fna square », explains Zemrani, specifying that nights cost between 500 and 1,000 DH or even double, once the supply of rooms or apart-hotels is exhausted (1,500-2,000 DH).

But if summer is lucrative for Moroccan hoteliers and owners of apartments and bungalows, it is also lucrative for certain foreign destinations offering equivalent or even lower packages in terms of price, and often with better quality of services.

Competition requires, more and more candidates for vacations outside Morocco are taking the boat or the plane.

Turkey, a serious competitor

Thus, if we had to make a ranking, Turkey would be, according to our interlocutor, one of the most popular destinations for Moroccans.

« Between the absence of a visa and only 4 hours by plane, this country which is a hit all year round has an incredible rating, especially since it offers packages for all budgets. It is favored by nationals curious to discover a country that they regularly see in Turkish soap operas.

« Between affordable prices, cleanliness, freedom, craftsmanship…, Turkey really has it all and is becoming a real competitor for our national tourism », affirms Zemrani who adds that Morocco should take inspiration from this destination with its very high tourist return rate.

Spanish operators come to Morocco to prepare for the summer season

Same for Spain which, despite the visa requirement, has become an essential destination for a growing number of Moroccans, especially in summer.

« From a market receiving foreign tourists, Morocco has transformed in a few years into a source market which is not negligible.

« We are even talking about nearly a million Moroccans traveling abroad.

« The first to understand this development are the Spaniards who, from April, are organizing Eductours throughout the national territory. Their T.O. come on site and offer their products (hotel rooms, apartments, etc.) to Moroccan travel agents.

« In addition, representatives of several Spanish hotel chains established in Morocco also come to approach local operators so that they send them customers, especially to the Costa Del Sol.

90% of Moroccans rent Spanish apartments

« Over the last few years, Morocco has become a real source market, especially for apartment rentals, as were the French and Germans in the 80s and 90s.

« Today, it is very often European apartment owners who live in them all year round and rent them in the summer.

« The night costs around 1,000 DH for stays of 7 to 15 days in furnished accommodation for at least 4 people located in residences with a swimming pool and even a concierge service.

« To top it all off, the proximity of supermarkets with cheap food products combined with affordable entertainment means that Moroccan summer visitors can spend a vacation on a very reasonable budget.

« In this regard, certain small towns on the Costa Del Sol such as Fuengirola are becoming predominantly Moroccan resorts with a dedicated offer of halal products and even mosques.

« Apart from affordable prices, for the upper middle class, there is also the freedom factor with, for example, the certainty that no one will look askance at your wife or daughter whether she is in a bikini or a burkini.

« If apartment rentals are so successful, it is because these tourist residences most often date from the end of the 1970s. They have had plenty of time to be amortized, which is not yet the case for those in Morocco built at the start of the second millennium », concludes our interlocutor who adds that many middle-class Moroccans are increasingly going to Asian countries.

Turkey and Asia top Atlas Voyages sales

An observation confirmed by Othman Cherif Alami, president of the leading Moroccan tour operator, Atlas Voyages, which sells an increasing number of plane+stay packages in countries such as Thailand, Malaysia, etc.

« Our group offers packs for Asia ranging between 14,000 and 18,000 DH for 10 days, including full board and excursions.

« There are more and more Moroccans interested in these options but the foreign destination that is really popular is undoubtedly Turkey.

« It works so well that our annual objective for this destination alone is 10,000 packs, which is far from negligible in terms of turnover.

« Its popularity with our customers is partly explained by a very cheap price. Thus, for a stay of 6 nights (plane plus Bed and breakfast) you need to count on an average of 6,000 DH and with full board, around 11,000 DH for 10 days.

« Spain is also a destination that is doing very well but for the moment, we are not present in this segment (apart from hotel stays) because we do not yet have a partnership with large apartment owners.

Moroccan travel abroad is starting to become an industry

« As an organizer of trips inside and outside the Kingdom, I do not see the tourism of Moroccans abroad as competition or a threat to national tourism but rather as a complement because resorts like Martil are full from July 1 to August 30.

“It is a nascent industry which is developing with difficulty with the visa requirement and limited purchasing power but the recent increase in the tourist allocation (45,000 DH) now allows travel agents to make it a specialty,” explains Alami who thinks that the figure of 18.9 billion DH in travel expenses (source: foreign exchange office) is largely underestimated due to illegal and undeclared outflows of currencies.

Financial losses or not for local tourism, the growing spending of Moroccans abroad shows a change in travel consumption patterns among the upper middle class in Morocco in search of a change of scenery and a better summer environment at more or less comparable prices.

source: medias24.com