by Dana Halawi
BEIRUT, Lebanon, July 28 (NNN-XINHUA) – About 10 years ago, Lebanon was among the top tourist destinations for travellers from the Gulf.
Gulf tourists were keen to secure their room reservations in Lebanon’s hotels, starting May or June of every year, to visit touristic attractions in the country, including beach resorts, mountains, shopping malls, pubs and historic monuments.
However, the situation has changed now.
Pierre Ashkar, president of the Syndicate of Hotel Owners in Lebanon, said that, Lebanon lost in the past few years many of its Saudi and Emirati tourists, due to political bickering and the hatred speech by some political parties against Gulf countries.
“Unfortunately, we have lost many of our tourists from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since 2011, due to political statements against these countries, war in neighbouring Syria, in addition to threats of a potential war between the United States and Iran, and the possibility of Lebanon’s involvement in such a conflict,” Ashkar said, in an interview.
He said that, while Lebanon’s hotels were fully occupied by Gulf tourists in the past, occupancy in Beirut stands at an average of 75 percent now, while hotels in the mountains see only 40 percent occupancy this summer.
“Even Gulf tourists who own houses in Lebanese mountains rarely visited now,” he said.
Ashkar said former regular Saudi and UAE tourists have chosen other countries, such as Turkey, Greece and Cyprus.
In addition to complicated political developments, Ashkar said, the lower number of tourists from the Gulf during this summer was also caused by the latest security incidents that took place in Aley and Tripoli this year.
On June 4, a total of four members of the Lebanese Army and Internal Security forces were killed, in a terror attack that hit Lebanon’s northern city, Tripoli.
Also, the convoy of Lebanese Minister of State for the Displaced, Saleh Gharib, was attacked on June 30, while he was heading to the mountain village of Qabr Shamoun. Two of his guards were killed.
Rashid Al Aawar, in charge of reservations at Safir Bhamdoun Hotel, said, he also wanted to see more Saudi and Emirati tourists this year. The hotel witnessed some cancellations of reservations after the incidents.
Likewise, front desk manager at Cherry Blossom hotel in Bhamdoun, said, tourists from Saudi Arabia and UAE are very rare now.
However, Lebanon is witnessing a surge in demand by tourists from other countries, such as Egypt, Jordan, Iran and European countries.
Ashkar said, expectations of a record number of two million tourists this year is possible, because the number of European tourists have increased remarkably.
However, Ashkar said, Lebanon usually benefits most from Gulf tourists because they spend the most and stay for longer periods compared with other nationalities.
Ashkar also noted that European tourists are using hospitality service websites and apps like Airbnb, which have become popular, by allowing people to rent rooms in people’s houses, instead of hotels to save money.
He stressed the need to draft a strategy that would not only increase the number of tourists from different countries, but also work on bringing back Gulf tourists to Lebanon, especially the young generations.– NNN-XINHUA
