Lebanon’s hospitality and tourism industry is in crisis management mode when it comes to dealing with its finances. As the number of tourists visiting the country has steadily declined down 8.7 percent in January and 17.8 percent in February compared to the first two months of 2013, companies in the sector are running out of cash.
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Local anthropologist and tour operator Nour Farra Haddad has released what is arguably the most comprehensive guidebook ever on ecotourism in Lebanon. The book, a guided directory written in English, aims to promote internal tourism among Lebanese as foreign visitors have dwindled alongside security. “The idea of the book, now especially, is to develop domestic tourism because we all know nowadays that we don’t have international tourists coming from abroad,” Haddad told The Daily Star.
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Lebanon’s capital ranked 20th in the world’s best cities according to Condé Nast Traveler’s 2013 Readers’ Choice Awards, CNN reported Thursday. In the organization’s 26th annual rankings announced Wednesday, Beirut came in above Paris, which ranked 22nd, as well as Venice and Barcelona which jointly took 24th place.
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According to weekly report issued by the ‘Bank of Lebanon Credit’ and ‘Byblos Bank’, the city of Beirut recorded the highest rate of retreat in the Middle East.
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When it comes to planning an extravagant vacation, it seems to be more and more about the family. The latest report by the International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM) revealed a global growth in the multi-generational, family luxury travel market. The Lebanese are no exception; Nakhal, a Lebanese travel agency, told Executive that more than 60 percent of their high-end customers are families.
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Beirut recorded a significant decline of 10% in terms of hotel occupancy during the month of June for the year 2013.
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This is yet another one of the union of hotels president Pierre Achkar’s cry of despair announcing in an interview with al-Markaziya agency that “not only several tourist institutions will close their doors this summer, but that many Lebanese living abroad have changed their plans and will spend the summer in the United States or Europe,“ thus confirming what had been announced by the Minister of Tourism Fadi Abboud about 200 weddings canceled or relocated.
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The number of departing and arriving passengers at Rafik Hariri International Airport rose by 17 percent in March and 11 percent in the first quarter of this year, according to the Civil Aviation Authority. The report also said that this improvement occurred despite the 68 percent fall in transit passengers last month and 72 percent in the first three months of 2013.
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Following a year marked by a sharp decline in tourism and an acute economic slowdown, Beirut’s Central District, known for its high-end stores and numerous restaurants, looks set to shed more of its outlets as businesses prepare to close their doors.
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Voices From the Periphery
leo bites 