Moroccan Tourists Flock to Spain’s Costa del Sol, Shunning Home Beaches

Southern Spain has always been popular with Moroccans. This year, they are still numerous to spend their holidays on the beaches of the Iberian peninsula during the summer season. This is evidenced by the number of Moroccan families going there, as well as the number of vehicles registered in Morocco. The peculiarity of this year? They have been joined by members of the Moroccan community abroad living notably in Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Germany. Thus, "several families residing in Morocco or in European countries organize meetings with their relatives residing abroad in Spanish cities, to spend their holidays together in tourist resorts, particularly in the Costa del Sol," reports Al Ahdath Al Maghribia.

The attraction of Moroccans for southern Spain stems from dishonorable practices observed on Moroccan beaches: the existence of scam networks run by swindlers, who demand "royalties" from anyone wishing to relax on the sand. According to the local press, these networks of renting chairs and parasols, whose initiators collect these "royalties" under duress. Facts confirmed by many Moroccans spending their holidays in Spain. To these practices are added the frequentation of Moroccan beaches by people they describe as "lunatics", as well as the blackmail they exert on tourists.