Travel and Tourism - Morocco - August 2008

Travel and Tourism - Morocco - August 2008

About this report

Less than two years remain before Morocco realises the goals of Vision 2010, launched in 2001 under King Mohammed VI. This plan – to streamline the country’s tourism industry, encourage investment in the tourism sector, design tourism training programmes and create more employment – includes upgrading of infrastructure, widening the choice of tourism products and beefing up air services between Morocco, Europe and the Middle East. Much of this has already been achieved. In 2007, tourist arrivals hit 7 million – up from 4.7 million in 2003 – just 3 million short of the 10 million visitors that Morocco is hoping to attract by 2010.

An increase in the number of low-cost carriers (LCCs) linking Morocco to Europe, as well as an Open Skies Agreement with the European Union (EU), signed in December 2006, has helped to fuel this jump in arrivals, as have improvements to transport infrastructure. Several airport terminals are being (or have been) modernised and runway improvements are underway in Tangier and Marrakech. The airport upgrades have speeded up the processing of passengers through major gateways such as Casablanca’s Mohammed V Airport (it handled 5.8 million domestic and international passengers in 2007) and Marrakech, the leading destination for short-break holidays and weekend getaways. Marketing campaigns centred on other cities, such as Fez and Tangiers, have also boosted inbound travel.

Contents

Morocco
Introduction
Data Sources
Background
History
Geography
Attractions
The Imperial Cities
Fez
Marrakech
Meknes
Rabat
Golf
Tourism and the Economy
Figure 1: Unemployment in urban and rural areas, and Marrakech, 2002-07
Tourism revenues
Figure 2: Tourism revenues and expenditures showing balance of payments, 2002-07
Arrivals
International
Figure 3: International tourist arrivals, 2003-07
Figure 4: Leading sources of inbound travel, 2003-07
Domestic
Market Characteristics
International
Purpose of visit/length of stay
Seasonality
Figure 5: Air passenger movements (domestic and international) by month, showing seasonality, 2007
Domestic
Transport
Air
Figure 6: Number of domestic and international passengers handled by morocco’s main airports, 2003-07
Airlines
Road
Rail/Sea
Accommodation
Figure 7: Accommodation – number of registered beds by destination, 2002-06
Tourism News
What Next?