Infomédiaire Maroc – The British research firm, Oxford Business Group (OBG) has just published an analysis of the current year in the tourism sector, a copy of which has reached Infomédiaire Maroc.
“The kingdom recorded 5.1 million arrivals in the first half of this year, an increase of 10% year-on-year, according to the Morocco Tourism Observatory. Results which stem from an increase in the number of visitors from European source markets, notably Italy (18%), Germany (13%), France (10%), the Netherlands (8%) and the United Kingdom (7%).
A detailed analysis of the figures also revealed that the number of foreign tourists increased by 17% during the period, while trips by Moroccan nationals living abroad increased by 1%.
Foreigners constitute 62% of arrivals, compared to 32% for Moroccan citizens residing abroad, figures which contrast with the results at the end of 2017 where there were 51.3% of foreign arrivals and where Moroccans residing abroad represented 48.7% of arrivals.
This trend should prove a blessing for the sector, as the rise in the number of foreign visitors should help the authorities achieve their goal of welcoming 20 million tourists by 2020.
China, the future engine of tourism development
If traditional source markets continue to experience sustained growth, public authorities are also trying to increase the number of tourists from new countries in order to diversify money inflows and help achieve the objectives associated with the Vision 2020 strategy.
Among these new markets, China appears to be a key target, with the government introducing a visa exemption for Chinese nationals in June 2016, following the example of several other African nations.
This policy has led to a considerable increase in the number of Chinese arrivals, which rose from 42,000 in 2016 to 120,000 last year, reaching 100,000 during the first 5 months of 2018, according to the office of the Moroccan National Tourism Office (ONMT) in Beijing.
If the number of Chinese choosing Morocco represents only a small part of the 150 million Chinese tourists who travel abroad every year, the market has strong potential. Mohammed Sajid, the Minister of Tourism, Air Transport, Crafts and Social Economy, defined the objective of attracting 500,000 Chinese tourists per year to Morocco by 2020.
An increase which could prove essential for the tourism sector: a report from the Moroccan Tourism Observatory dated 2017 revealed that Chinese tourists in the country spend on average 867 dirhams (78.80 euros) per night, compared to 695.4 dirhams (63.20 euros) for the average tourist.
In order to achieve the set objective, efforts are currently being made to improve connections between Morocco and China, with Mr. Sajid announcing for example in February that the national airline Royal Air Maroc was studying the possibility of establishing a direct flight between the two countries, a further step after the creation of partnerships between the airline and other carriers such as Etihad Airways, Turkish Airlines and Air France which aim to improve connections between Moroccan and Chinese cities.
Strengthen hotel capacities
Anticipating the expected increase in arrivals from China and traditional markets in the coming years, authorities have been working to expand hotel capacity to meet expected demand.
In September, the French group Louvre Hotels Group inaugurated a 411-room multi-brand hotel complex in Casablanca. The project, developed in partnership with the Moroccan investment fund H Partners, includes a Première Classe establishment, a Campanile and a Kyriad, targeting business travelers and tourists and offering budget and mid-range accommodation.
This project is part of a broader strategy which intends to create, by 2020, 200,000 beds which will be added to the 243,000 beds in the Moroccan hotel portfolio at the end of 2016.
source: infomediaire.net
