Morocco’s Tourism Industry Faces Mixed Results as Summer Season Ends

"Tourism in the region has experienced a significant slowdown during the summer holidays this year, the effects of which we have perceived as professionals with a decrease of at least 50% in overnight stays compared to the same period last year," said Soufiane Bechar, a professional and president of the Regional Association of the Hotel Industry of Drâa-Tafilalet, in a statement to Hespress. According to him, the tourism balance sheet for the summer season is modest. He explained that this assessment is due to several factors, including the deterioration of the purchasing power of families, who were used to visiting the region during the holidays, after the unprecedented rise in the prices of Eid al-Adha sheep and the inflation of the prices of several basic consumer products in recent months.

"The hoteliers in the region have taken these constraints into account and have applied exceptional reductions of up to 50% in some cases, to encourage middle-class families to reconnect with the tourist destinations of Assamar. However, these efforts have not yielded the expected results. [...] On the other hand, many members of the Moroccan community residing abroad, who energize the tourism sector in the region during this period, particularly enthusiasts of Saharan tourism, did not come to Morocco due to the coincidence of the summer holidays with the Paris Olympics," he added.

The summer season has nevertheless allowed professionals in the sector to prepare for the autumn season. "This drop in the number of overnight stays during these holidays has been used by professionals to carry out renovations in the construction and equipment of hotels in order to be ready for the peak in attendance that the tourism sector in the region experiences from mid-September onwards," Bechar said, stressing that professionals are counting on the engagement season in Imilchil, scheduled for this year from September 19 to 21, as well as the International Date Palm Fair in Morocco in October, which attracts many Moroccan tourists to Erfoud and Errachidia.

Mustapha Amalik, secretary general of the Marrakech Hotel Industry Association, does not fully share Bechar’s opinion. "The overnight stays and tourist accommodation in the various hotels in the city have experienced, during the summer holidays this year, a significant improvement compared to previous years. Although the month of July saw a delay in the influx of tourists in the tourist areas, including Marrakech, due to several reasons, including the delay in the return of members of the Moroccan community residing abroad due to the coincidence of the holidays with the French elections and the Paris Olympics, the hotels have made up for this delay by recording high occupancy rates in August," he assured the same site. He added: "Despite the recent impact on the purchasing power of domestic tourists due to the rise in the prices of basic products and the advance of July salaries, a significant part of which was absorbed by the Eid al-Adha holiday, this did not have a major impact on the booking rate in hotels and accommodation."

"Certain perceptions that hotels, by applying high rates, have not encouraged Moroccans to do domestic tourism, are not logical," Amalik estimated. He explains: "In fact, it is practically impossible to spend a night in a five-star hotel in Marrakech or Agadir for around 500 dirhams, for example." Like Bechar, Amalik argues that professionals in the sector are betting on the next season. "Hotel owners, especially in Marrakech, are counting, after the end of the summer holidays, on the month of September, which sees the red city experience a peak in conference tourism, thanks to the hosting, during this month, of several international events and conferences that attract hundreds of participants and visitors," he said, adding that "overnight stays in Marrakech continue, after this month, to follow an upward trend and reach their peak during the Christmas holidays at the end of the calendar year."