Dakhla — Morocco has welcomed 14.6 million tourists by the end of this year's October, surpassing in just 10 months, the record for the entire year 2023, Minister of Tourism, Handicraft, and Social and Solidarity Economy, Fatim-Zahra Ammor, announced on Wednesday in Dakhla.
This exceptional performance was achieved thanks to the effective implementation of the tourism roadmap for 2023-2026, Ammor said during the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding between the Moroccan National Tourist Office (ONMT) and the airline Ryanair on the launch from January 2025 of two new direct air routes connecting Dakhla to Madrid in Spain and to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands.
This performance represents an increase of 19% compared to the same period in 2023, or 2.3 million additional arrivals, she added, noting that this remarkable growth was driven by both foreign tourists, up 22% (+1.3 million), and Moroccan expatriates, up 16% (+1 million).
The performance in October 2024 was particularly good, with some 1.5 million tourists welcomed, representing an exceptional increase of 30% compared to October 2023, she added.
With these extraordinary figures, Morocco is more than ever asserting its position as a must-see destination internationally, she noted, adding that the Kingdom's regions offer a mosaic of unique experiences, which continue to amaze travelers from all over the world.
She also highlighted the steady development of Dakhla's touristic offer, recording 250,000 overnight stays last September, an increase of 26%, and a hotel occupancy rate of 40%, up 7 points.
As for air traffic in Dakhla, it saw a 30% increase in air seats (31,000 air seats in 2024), she added.
In this vein, the official stated that Dakhla welcomes three weekly flights from Paris, with one flight operated by Royal Air Maroc and two flights by Transavia, in addition to two weekly flights from Las Palmas by Binter Canaria.
Ammor also announced that starting January 2025, two new direct air routes connecting Dakhla to Madrid in Spain and Lanzarote in the Canary Islands will be operational, with two frequencies per week.
These new routes will add some 16,000 additional airline seats, increasing capacity by 50%, she added, noting that this is a major step towards achieving the goal of four international air routes to Dakhla within two years.
