Morocco becomes one of the preferred African destinations for Americans

The double-digit annual growth in the number of American visitors to Morocco suggests that this market will generate at least 2 million arrivals in the next five years, compared to 351,000 in 2024, according to the ONMT study. In addition to the United States, Latin America (Mexico), Europe (France, Italy, Portugal, etc.) and Asia (Thailand), Morocco also attracts Americans to the point of becoming a destination of choice for their stays in Africa, reports Médias24.

In total, 100 million Americans travel internationally. The ONMT is seeking to take a considerable share of the American market. In this regard, the Office has multiplied partnerships with the USTOA travel association, a key player in terms of travel recommendations. While this is a beneficial partnership, it is still largely insufficient, as only 40% of the 150 tour operators affiliated with USTOA offer trips to Morocco, the study points out.

The ONMT will therefore have to redouble its efforts to ensure that the other tour operators include the Moroccan destination in their program. Efforts must also be made to increase the share of business tourism. Last year, it only generated $5 million. To reverse the trend, Morocco can capture more MICE-type events compared to competing countries such as Portugal, the United Arab Emirates, Spain, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Turkey and France.

The lack of responsiveness of Moroccan operators is detrimental to Morocco, which thus falls into the category of slow destinations. In terms of turnover, this cost the kingdom $97 million and 300,000 units redistributed to competitors in the MENA region in 2024.