Rabat – Morocco welcomed 4.6 million visitors in the year’s first six months, up 9% over the same period of last year, according to the country’s Ministry of Tourism. The number of foreign tourists increased 14% in the same comparison, with the visits from Moroccans living abroad going up 3%. The data was published this Wednesday (2) by news outlet Maghreb Arabe Presse (MAP).
From the markets already considered traditional, the number of tourists went up from Germany (12%), Spain (7%) and the Netherlands (8%). Among the emerging markets for Morocco’s tourism, the highlights were China, with a 565% increase in tourist flow, Japan (46%), South Korea (42%), United States (27%) and Brazil (41%).
The number of daily rates in the country’s hotel increased 18% in the year’s first six months in comparison to the same period of 2016. The performance was especially positive in the cities of Marrakech, Agadir, Fez and Tangier. The hotels’ daily occupancy rate stood at 40% on average, up 4 percentage points in the same comparison.
However, tourism revenues declined slightly to MAD 26.38 billion (USD 2.765 billion), down 0.5% in comparison to the same months of last year.
In June, the number of visitors in Morocco increased 12% in comparison to the same month of 2016, according to the Ministry.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani