Receptive tourism: Prices are skyrocketing

Is the Morocco destination becoming too expensive? “We are no longer able to offer our foreign customers packages with the same prices as before. They are surprised by the price levels reached by the various tourist services. Everything has gone up”, says one tour operator.

The tourist package in question includes accommodation, catering, transport, and the costs of visiting monuments and guides. Thus, for a 10-day circuit, for example, including Rabat, Chaouen, Midelt, Erfoud, Merzouga, Ouarzazate, Marrakech, and Casablanca, the rates of a major tourist transport agency in Ouarzazate is 30,000 Dirhams (USD 3,000)  instead of 22,000 Dirhams (USD 2,200). It should be understood that these prices relate to the 2023-2024 tourist season. “The rise in diesel fuel prices cannot alone explain all this difference. Moreover, the price of fuel has started to fall”, says the tour operator who achieves with the same tourist transport agency a monthly turnover of around one million Dirhams (USD 100,000). Negotiations are also underway to get a discount on the asking price. “Tourist transport, which before Covid used to cost 9 Dirhams excluding tax / km excluding travel, now costs 11 Dirhams / km, that is to say around 13.50 Dirhams including tax per kilometer”, points out Omar Belhachmi, boss of the Voyages Paradis agency. In terms of catering, the owners of classified restaurants deny having generated any increase in prices. “We try to pass on the price increase as little as possible to the end consumer. If this continues, indeed, there will be a slight increase. We keep all our employees. Our charges are identical. We have all gone through very difficult times but we are holding our course. We hope that prices will become reasonable again to allow consumers to benefit from a greater purchasing power and this will be beneficial for all”, says Imane Rmili, President of the National Federation of Restaurant Owners.

For high-end receptive tourism, “customers who pay 5,000 euros  for their stay, for example, do not balk at a 10% increase”, points out Omar Belhachmi. The formula also includes the services of tourist guides.

Again, fee increases are reported by several tour operators. Some Chinese or Japanese speaking guides now demand to be paid up to 1,000 Dirhams versus 400 Dirhams previously. “We deal with national and local guides and have seen fee hikes of 30% to 40%. Some guides who used to charge 300 dirhams per day for their services are now claiming 700 dirhams”, confirms Omar Belhachmi, tour operator.

Does the price level of the Morocco destination risk compromising the achievement of the goal of receiving 17.5 million tourists in 2026?

Hassan EL ARIF