(Ecofin Agency) - According to statistics from Morocco’s Tourism Observatory, 4.2 million tourists have visited the kingdom in the first half of 2016 ended in June. This represents a 2.6% decrease compared to the same period the year before.

The number of foreign tourists who have visited Morocco over the period has indeed decreased by 5.6%, while arrivals of Moroccans from the Diaspora increased by 1.7% only.

The fall in number of foreign tourists is mainly due to a lower number of tourists from the United Kingdom (-8%), Germany (-7%), France (-5%) and Italy (-5%). Only the number of tourists from the US has grown slightly (+1%).

As a result, the number of overnight stays in tourist-hosting establishments slumped by 4% this year compared to 2015, over the period considered. Moreover, the rate of occupancy at the end of June 2016 was 36%, thus 4 pt less than in 2015, over the same period.

In terms of most visited places, data from the Moroccan Tourism Observatory reveals that Marrakech and Agadir grabbed 59% of overall overnight stays during the first half of 2016. This value however corresponds to a decrease of 3% and 5% for the respective cities. The slump also extends to Fes (-20%), Rabat (-5%). Only Casablanca and Tangiers recorded an increase of 2% and 5% respectively.

Concerning tourism revenues, the Observatory indicated that in June 2016 only, travel receipts in foreign currency reached 3.7 billion dirham ($382.6 million), thus decreasing by 11.6% in comparison to June 2015.