Tunisian tourism hits the comeback trail

North African destination looks to get back to basics by promoting its value-for-money credentials.

Tunisia is crafting a new strategy to make a tourism comeback after a sharp drop in European visitors last year. The North African country wants to polish up its image as a destination for value-for-money beach holidays but also broaden its appeal to tourists who are interested in tours, culture and activity holidays. In 2009, Tunisia suffered an 8.8% drop in European visitor numbers to 3.7 million. The fall wiped out several years of moderate growth and left the country below its 2005 figure of 3.9 million tourists. The German market continued its recent decline with a 7.2% drop to 484,000 arrivals.

In response, Tunisian tourism minister Slim Tlatli said the country will continue to improve its infrastructure and product range to achieve a turnaround. A hotel upgrade programme is well under way, he said, while an airport with annual capacity of ten million passengers has opened between Hammamet and Sousse to improve air links and reduce hotel transfer times. In addition, Tunisia will promote its mixture of historical and cultural attractions, Sahara tours and wellness holidays more intensively. Tunisia hopes to increase international tourist numbers to ten million by 2014, and raise German arrival figures to about 800,000.
Hall 21b, Stand 213