Morocco’s tourism industry, accounting for a large portion of Morocco’s GDP, is rebounding in a big way after having been crushed by the two-year coronavirus pandemic. In the first half of 2023, arrivals increased by a whopping 92% over the same period in 2022, with 3.2 million additional visitors coming just through the country’s three main airports in Marrakech, Casablanca, and Agadir.
The figure represents about 49% of the total number of arrivals to the Kingdom, according to the Tourism Observatory, a public-private initiative set up in 2005 to support the development of the tourism industry. In total, 6.5 million tourists arrived during the first six months of this year.
Not surprisingly, France ranked as the number one origin country for international tourists visiting Morocco, according to the Observatory’s data. In the first half of 2023, 415,000 French tourists arrived, a jump of 75% over the previous year. 404,000 travelers from Spain visited the Kingdom, a 180% increase over 2022 figures.
The United Kingdom, Italy, and the United States also ranked as sending higher numbers of tourists, with 100%, 141%, and 111% increases, respectively.
In contrast, tourism from Belgium and Israel declined this year by 12% (- 2,000 visitors) and 22% (1.5 K travelers), respectively.
The outstanding performance in the first six months of the year had a significant impact on the country’s main airports, including Marrakech Menara, Mohammed V (Casablanca), and Agadir Al Massira. Arrivals at Marrakech Menara increased by 91%, Mohammed VI by 41%, and Agadir Al Massira by 79%.
Likewise, the number of visitor arrivals at border crossings was up, over 1.4 million in June alone, marking a 20 percent rise versus June 2022.
The surge in tourism is mostly attributable to the post-pandemic recovery of the global tourism market and inflation slowdown.