Morocco’s Tourism Revolution: Airbnb and Riads to Boost Overnight Stays 10% by 2027

The Minister of Tourism had announced the adoption of a supplementary decree to Law 80-14 which will take into account non-declared accommodation establishments, including guest houses, Airbnb-type rentals, riads, etc. This measure will be a major turning point for the tourism industry, confides an expert to Médias24.

"Given the upward momentum of tourism, accommodation providers who do not have the capacity to invest to meet the necessary conditions for the classification of their property as hotel-type accommodation are many to welcome the future evolution of Law 80-14 which will include a decree relating to their establishments," develops the same source, adding that this future regulatory framework targeting undeclared housing will be implemented gradually.

This formalization will help replenish the state’s coffers and promote Morocco as an international tourist destination. It will also contribute to the establishment of competition between all the players in the sector who will thus be subject to the same tax and regulatory obligations, analyzes the expert. Even though there are no official statistics on informal housing, the latter estimates their bed capacity at around 20% of the overall hotel stock (400,000 beds), or nearly 80,000 unregistered beds nationwide.

"Upon its implementation scheduled in two years, the sector should achieve an additional growth in annual overnight stays of around 10%," emphasizes the expert, who considers the new rental housing classification system providing for mystery visits in tourist establishments to be salutary. According to him, this measure will help improve the quality of accommodation services.