Travel and Tourism in Morocco

Abstract

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Tourism industry sees good growth over the review period

The industry of travel and tourism continued to grow healthily in 2005 in Morocco, thanks to the increased number of inbound as well as outbound tourists. The number of arrivals in 2005 rose by almost 2% over the previous year, while departures recorded a growth of over 2% compared to 2004. Travel and tourism was positively impacted by the improved economy, which contributed to the stimulation of outgoing and the domestic travel. In this respect, the growth rate of Moroccans taking holidays jumped to 31% in 2005. The industry benefited also from Morocco' s geographical situation, which makes it feasible for low cost carriers to operate to these destinations and an attractive destination for city breaks, local security enforcement and the positive image of the kingdom in the outside world. These factors have made Morocco a desirable destination for international tourists. The government travel and tourism policy was another moving force behind the growth in that it embarked on the development of tourist resorts, and also offered encouraging incentives in favour of domestic as well as foreign investors. Moreover, tourism facilities are in abundance, offering a variety of tourism activities - beach resorts, cultural tourism, trekking, desert expeditions, rural tourism and sports tourism.

More arrivals and fewer departures

Despite the recession recorded in 2005, the number of arrivals continued to grow in 2005, up almost 2% over the previous year. The major tourists for Morocco largely come from Europe in general and from France and Spain in particular, which can be explained by the proximity of Morocco to Europe. This geographical location of the kingdom makes it easy for such clients to flock easily to Morocco. Europeans top the list of arrivals, accounting for 86%, 48% of which are French visitors and 16% are Spaniards. The dominance of French tourists is attributable to the strong bonds between France and Morocco left over from the period when Morocco was a protectorate of France, a common language and established routes between France and Morocco. Morocco is a preferred African destination thanks to its stricter security enforcement in contrast with the security concerns experienced in other African countries such as Egypt. Departures still progressed at a relatively slow pace in 2005, up 2% over the previous year. Though this was positive growth, the number of Moroccans travelling outside the country is still low, due to the fact that travelling for pleasure is limited to high disposable income individuals who are not affected by the strong foreign currencies. The most commonly visited destinations for Moroccan travellers were Saudi Arabia, France and Spain.

Despite efforts, domestic tourism sees sluggish growth

Domestic tourism recorded a volume growth of 0.2% over the previous year. This sluggish growth was mainly determined by the low levels of disposable income which frustrates the majority of the Moroccan citizens from leisure travelling. This activity is still restricted to the Moroccans in the mid-high disposable income groups. In 2005 the number of Moroccans taking holidays was 31% of the population, up over 3% on 2004, and 24% over the period as a whole. Domestic tourism benefited from the economic progress achieved by the kingdom and from the fact that the outbound tourism became expensive. Beaches become the favoured destination for local as well as inbound tourists, accounting for around 40% of total tourists in 2005. The government' s strategies for promoting the industry are embodied in the creation of the “Plan Azure” through which Morocco hopes to attract 10 million visitors by 2010 which includes partial privatisation of the national airline, and in the annual organisation of several campaigns such as “Holidays for All” and “Konouz Biladi”. These mainly focus on encouraging local tourism by supplying more information to Moroccans about various sites worth visiting in Morocco, and also gives discounts to local tourists, especially on accommodation costs. These two campaigns are focused on encouraging local tourism in the summer months.

Internet transactions still not broadly adopted by Moroccans

Internet transactions did not contribute much to the travel and tourism evolution over the review period, as the majority of local companies did not start online sales until recently. Internet penetration in Morocco is still low although considered the highest in North Africa. However, by 2005, the large hotels and foreign-invested tour operators (such as Atlas Hospitality Morocco and Groupe Accor) had websites, where visitors can not only find the information they need, but can also book and pay via the website. As a result, internet transactions are mostly increasing within travel retail services especially for packaged holidays, flights and accommodation followed by car rental service, travel accommodation and transportation. The incidence of internet bookings is higher in travel retail services and travel accommodation thanks to the numbers of foreigners booking these services, based in countries where online bookings are much more common than in Morocco.

Local key players

The main active local companies are Air Royal Maroc in transportation and Atlas Hospitality Morocco in travel accommodation. These two companies lead travel and tourism in the country, with Air Royal Maroc dominating airline travel with a share of 60% in 2005. Atlas Hospitality Morocco is the new company resulting from the merger of Sogatour and Sotoram in 2005. It led the travel accommodation sector with a share of 2% in 2005. Other tourist sectors are dominated by the international players such as Hertz and Avis in car rental services and Libyan Arab Foreign Investment Company in hotels.

Bright future for tourism industry

Travel and tourism in Morocco is predicted to see healthy development over the forecast period (up to 2010) thanks to the continuous efforts from the government to support this key industry, rolling out promotions abroad and within the country, as well as offering incentives to foreign investors to set up projects in Morocco. The growth will include all tourism, domestic, incoming and outgoing. Transportation and car rental are set to flourish as more people will be able to travel due to rising levels of disposable income. The improvements grounded in the economic reforms - such as privatisation and attractive incentives given to foreign companies to invest in Morocco - will create additional jobs, for example administrative posts, as well as the employment generated by increased tourism activity arising from these initiatives. Moreover, more tourists from remote areas will visit the kingdom (such as American and Russian tourists), attracted by the cultural and natural features of the country, as it has many historical monuments as well as fascinating natural landscapes which will help to boost long-haul travel. The competition will be tougher among the local and international key players. This competition will cover all sectors, but particularly travel accommodation and transportation. The constant improvement of the existing tourist infrastructure will be reinforced by the expected introduction of new ones such as building new motorways, regional airports, high speed trains and ports, which will generally enrich tourist attractions across the kingdom over the forecast period.