Tourism: The Drivers of Resilience

Against a highly tense and unpredictable geopolitical backdrop (wars in Iran and the Middle East, Ukraine/Russia, hantavirus concerns, rising airfares and jet fuel prices, declining long-haul travel…), Morocco is performing comparatively better and demonstrating notable resilience as a tourist destination.
According to Seto (the French professional association of tour operators and travel companies), Morocco remains one of the few destinations in the Arab world posting growth in tourist arrivals through the end of April, despite an overall downward trend affecting several tourism-dependent countries.
«Morocco is among the few fallback destinations, alongside places such as the Canary Islands, expected to stand out in 2026» said Patrice Caradec, president of the French association of tour operating companies (Seto).
«We welcomed nearly 20 million tourists in 2025. This momentum is continuing, with arrivals increasing by 7% during the first three months of this year», Tourism Minister Fatim-Zahra Ammor told the House of Councillors.
Indeed, the first quarter recorded 4.3 million tourist arrivals in Morocco, up 7% year-on-year. Growth was notably driven by the month of March, which posted a strong increase of around 18%.
By nationality, France remains Morocco’s leading source market, with the Kingdom continuing to rank among the preferred destinations for French travelers. In 2025, 5.2 million French visitors traveled to Morocco, representing nearly 10% of France’s outbound tourism market. Morocco’s stated ambition, it should be recalled, is to reach 10 million French visitors annually by 2030. Within this same context, management at Transavia France reported «strong booking momentum towards Morocco, particularly during last April’s holidays as well as the long weekends and public holidays in May». To absorb spring demand, the airline scheduled additional flights to Morocco, allocating more than 30% additional capacity. At the same time, Transavia also expanded operations to destinations such as Spain, Italy and Portugal.
Among the resilience factors supporting Morocco’s tourism performance, French experts point to several strengths, notably proximity, a mild and temperate climate, safety and a diversified tourism offering.
According to the president of Seto, Morocco has not only set ambitious targets to strengthen tourist attractiveness — aiming to increase from 6 million to 10 million tourists by 2030 — but has also mobilized substantial resources in terms of hotel capacity, accessibility and air connectivity.
Indeed, over recent months, Moroccan National Tourist Office has multiplied partnership agreements and seat-subsidy programs with several low-cost airlines (including Transavia France, Ryanair and easyJet) to capture a larger share of travel flows.
Amin RBOUB