Morocco's tourist arrivals up 8.2 pct in Jan.-July

Some 7.54 million tourists visited Morocco between January and July, an increase of 8.2 percent from the same period last year, the Moroccan Tourism Observatory said on Wednesday.

According to the statistics, the number of foreign tourists hiked by 8.3 percent, while the arrivals of Moroccans living abroad rose by 8.1 percent.

During the first seven months of 2019, the growth was mainly driven by the continuous increase of visits from traditional European markets.

The statistics showed increases of 13 percent in Italian tourist arrivals, 10 percent in French visitors, 9 percent in Spanish and Belgium tourists, and 8 percent in Dutch tourists.

Morocco's top tourist destinations Marrakech and Agadir posted increases of 8 percent and 3 percent, respectively, said the observatory.