Tourists Influx to Morocco Hit Record 960,000 in September Despite Earthquake

Morocco’s tourism sector is bouncing back strong after the devastating September 8 earthquake, with the number of tourists flocking to the country reaching record-high levels in 2023.

Rabat- Morocco’s tourism sector is bouncing back strong after the devastating September 8 earthquake, with the number of tourists flocking to the country reaching record-high levels in 2023.

According to data from the Tourism Ministry, Morocco received 960,000 tourists in September 2023, a 7% increase compared to the same period last year.

The ministry explained in a statement that tourist arrivals have “surpassed figures from September 2019 and 2022.”

Morocco welcomed a total of 11.1 million tourists over the first nine months of 2023, more than the total number of visitors in 2022.

“We couldn’t have hoped for a better context to announce the record for the month of September than the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and IMF in Marrakech,” the statement says.

According to Tourism Minister Fatim-Zahra Ammor, this influx of tourists constitutes “a significant achievement that highlights the attractiveness” of Morocco, “the resilience” of the Moroccan tourism sector, and the “effectiveness of the country’s response to the earthquake.”

She argued: “Even after this tragic earthquake, the growth of Moroccan tourism is maintained, and we remain determined to reach our goal of 14 million tourists by the end of December 2023.”

Morocco’s robust response to the earthquake had garnered international acclaim. Last week, the business-focused magazine the Financial Times issued a special report spotlighting the tourism sector’s “remarkable resilience.”

State support for the sector is a major factor contributing to its resilience.

In 2022, the minister secured government funding of MAD 6.1 billion (about $600 million) for a program aimed at increasing tourist arrivals to 17.5 million by the end of 2026 and creating 200,000 jobs directly and indirectly, with a goal of boosting annual tourism revenue to $12 billion.

Key to this ambitious plan is a restructuring of Morocco’s tourism offerings, including a diverse range of “experience” packages such as city breaks, cultural tours, beach vacations, watersports, mountain hiking, and gastronomic experiences.