The tourism recovery is confirmed, with increasing arrivals and a recovery rate which exceeds 71% compared to the years before the Covid-19 crisis. Revenues are also on the rise, but for tourists and operators, the season is synonymous with small budgets. Explanations.
The tourism recovery is confirmed, with increasing arrivals and a recovery rate which exceeds 71% compared to the years before the Covid-19 crisis. Revenues are also on the rise, but for tourists and operators, the season is synonymous with small budgets. Explanations.
The tourism recovery is confirmed, with increasing arrivals and a recovery rate which exceeds 71% compared to the years before the Covid-19 crisis. Revenues are also on the rise, but for tourists and operators, the season is synonymous with small budgets. Explanations.
“In reality, we are only keeping the machine running, but the account is not really there,” continues our interlocutor, a member of the National Tourism Confederation, who requested anonymity. The impact of the war in Ukraine and the general decline in purchasing power are the main reasons given to explain this reluctance or rather the incapacity of tourists to afford certain extravagances during this summer season considered to be that of the effective recovery of the tourist sector.
Budget of 400 euros
For example, foreign tour operators who direct their clients to Morocco offer packages which vary between 300 and 400 euros per week, or between 3,000 and 4,000 dirhams. “This package sometimes includes all-inclusive, namely air travel, car transfers, and sometimes even full board at the hotel,” informs a Moroccan tour operator.
“Finally, the Moroccan partners are trying to adapt to the situation by trying to offer something suitable, but it is far from profitable,” continues our interlocutor. In any case, on the side of the Moroccan National Tourism Office (ONMT), we are counting on promotion to reconnect with European markets, the main sources of tourists heading to Morocco.
According to the Minister of Tourism, Crafts and the Social and Solidarity Economy, Fatim-Zahra Ammor, foreign exchange earnings recorded during the first five months of 2022 amounted to 20 billion dirhams, an increase of 173% compared to 2021, and a recovery rate of 71% compared to 2019, before Covid-19.
The nationals too
As for domestic tourists, the situation is not better either. “Moroccans also monitor their budgets, but want to have quality offers at all costs,” observes a professional in the sector. Here too, both on the formal level and in the informal sector, we ensure that everyone opts for the lowest prices, even if it means lowering the level of their standing.
Moreover, in this regard, on the side of real estate agents, we report difficulties in selling high-end apartments. “People prefer mid-range apartments in order to save on their expenses,” says Brahim Lachaibi, Manager of the Acces Immo agency, based in Tangier, a seaside destination particularly popular during this summer season. “Currently, the situation is such that some colleagues from travel agencies and tour operators are offering offers to nationals giving them the possibility of paying in 10 installments. So, people go into debt for their leisure activities during the holidays,” says the boss of a Moroccan tour operator.
Resilience
In any case, on the government side, we seem to be observing the situation well. According to the Minister of Tourism, her department is currently looking “at the establishment of solid foundations for sustainable development of internal tourism through the encouragement of investment in this type of tourism and in leisure activities, the creation of resorts offering prices within the reach of all Moroccan tourists”. Because we must not forget that during the last two years of the pandemic, it was internal tourism that allowed the sector to hold on. And the government recognizes this unequivocally. According to Minister Ammor, domestic tourism remains “an essential condition which guarantees the resilience of the tourism sector in the face of crises”.
