Lebanon is preparing for a promising tourism season this summer, relied upon to extricate the country from its financial and economic crises, which the World Bank named as one of the three most severe global crises since the mid-nineteenth century.
Expectations of a busy summer are increasing with the start of the season approaching, and the arrival of about 1.2 million people, most of whom are expatriates, numbers tabulated via reservations at travel and tourism offices.
Nationalities
According to the head of the Federation of Tourist Syndicates and the Syndicate of Hotel Owners, Pierre Al-Ashkar, between 110 and 120 planes will land daily at the airport, i.e. between 18,000 and 20,000 people will enter the country every day from June 20 until late September.
A large number of Jordanian, Iraqi and Egyptian tourists are also expected to arrive, and 1,000 Iraqis may arrive per day as well.
As for the Syndicate of Owners of marine tourism complexes and the Secretary-General of the Federation of Tourist Establishments, Jean Beiruti, it is expected that other foreign nationals will visit Lebanon, such as those from Brazil, Argentina, Sweden, and South Africa.
As for traditional top arrivals, i.e. from the Gulf, it is expected that their numbers will remain low following recent diplomatic and political rows.
Accommodations and reservations
As for accommodations, the majority of Arab tourists will stay in hotels Around Beirut, and the duration of their stay will range between three and five days.
It is expected that they will stimulate tourism, especially in the well-known areas of the capital, the coast, and some Lebanese resorts.
As for Lebanese expatriates, the majority of them own a house in the country, and will likely visit restaurants, cafes, and nightclubs.
In addition, they are expected to make tours in various regions, which will boost domestic tourism, within a period of two and a half or three months.
In addition, sea fronting institutions will constitute an essential part of the tourism movement in the summer of 2022.
Tourism of all kinds will be more active in the coastal areas, whether they are hotels, restaurants, or nightclubs, but not to be discounted are mountainous areas that have witnessed growth in the last two years when domestic tourism became active.
According to Beiruti, the percentage of hotel reservations focused on hotels located on the coast and overlooking the sea, reached nearly 50 percent along the Lebanese coast.
While some other expatriates are looking for summer hotels to escape the hot weather, the electricity crisis is casting its shadows and will have an impact on sectors that are trying hard to find immediate solutions to get through the season.
Besides hotels, Guest Houses stand out, with about 125 guest houses fully booked over the summer months this year.
Tourism spending
With figures showing that between 2 and 3 billion dollars are expected to flow during this period, the Ministry of Tourism issued a circular allowing restaurants and tourist establishments to price in dollars and collect the value in Lebanese pounds.
This decision came after the instability of the local currency against the US dollar.
Lebanese officials considered that this decision is the most appropriate solution, as it fixes prices regardless of the exchange rate.
In addition, it protects tourists in Lebanon from confusion, and controls prices, creating an atmosphere of trust among visitors.
Hurdles
In light of the economic crisis, Lebanon worked on restoring its internal tourism thanks to individual efforts. Peripheral regions and remote rural areas witnessed a very promising tourism activity that contributed to their economic and social development.
This also attracted European tourists and Lebanese citizens alike.
However, domestic tourism is threatened by the inability of the average Lebanese citizen to bear the cost of reaching remote rural areas thanks to exorbitant fuel prices.
This prompted many domestic tourism companies to organize group tours that allowed participants to reach remote areas at the lowest possible cost.
In addition, severe power cuts, considered the mother of all crises, especially in the summer with rising temperatures, affected a large part of the tourist establishments, especially hotels and restaurants, some of which saw closures as the best solutions at the present time, considering high fuel prices that brought operating costs to the roof.
Reverse tourism
Despite the severe crisis that Lebanon is going through, some Lebanese believe that traveling abroad will be cheaper than domestic tourism.
According to reservation numbers, about 150,000 seats are bought on planes heading to different regions in Turkey, for example, and all the current reservations for the month of July are full.
The average cost, which varies according to the hotels chosen by customers, does not exceed $550 for four nights.
