By deciding to reopen its borders, starting from tomorrow, 7th February, Morocco is signaling a resumption of tourism under favorable reception conditions with a minimum of restrictions, Adel El Fakir, director general of the Moroccan National Tourist Office (ONMT), said in an interview published by French newspaper 'Le Figaro' last Wednesday.
"The aim is to guarantee both the safety of tourists and of our population. On site, freedom of movement is the rule, based on the vaccination pass. To date, 75% of the target Moroccan population is vaccinated, including all staff in the tourism sector," El Fakir noted in the interview published on the newspaper’s website.
El Fakir, who unveiled the health protocol that will govern arrivals and stays in the Kingdom from February 7, stressed that the signal given by the government last week, by announcing very early reception conditions favorable to travelers, "clearly indicates the reopening and resumption of tourism activity", which will be "gradual but sustainable, and secured by our health protocol".
Recalling that Morocco, as the first foreign destination of French nationals outside Europe, who represent one third of arrivals, received in 2019 nearly 4.2 million French tourists, El Fakir said that "we will not regain this position immediately."
Regarding the prospects for the resumption of air traffic, he said that a number of companies are already operating and confirm the resumption of their activity in Morocco, including Royal Air Maroc, which resumes all its frequencies, Air France and Transavia.
"Other companies are also preparing to resume flights. Regarding France, the objective is to reach by this summer the level of traffic before the pandemic, an average of 66 daily flights from 20 airports," he added, noting that "some companies expect to exceed the levels of pre-pandemic reservations”.
Asked whether Morocco was ready to welcome back millions of tourists, the Director General of the ONMT said that most hotels remained open and part of their activity was strongly supported by domestic tourism, which represents an average of 32% of overnight stays over the past 4 years.
In this same regard, El Fakir denied a possible increase in prices, noting that the sector is in recovery, while the objective of hoteliers is to accommodate their customers in the best conditions.
"We have seen over the past two years that there has been no change in prices. Again, the French market is extremely important to us. We expect a recovery in tourism in all destinations and with all types of travel”, he stressed.
"We are already seeing a resumption of reservations at the hotel and travel agency level," he added, noting that the health crisis has allowed Moroccans to rediscover or discover new destinations in their own country.
"The sector has been able to keep establishments open: it is a true form of resilience. Morocco must reposition itself in the minds of travelers as a reassuring destination of choice," he concluded.
