The recent surge in German arrivals to Agadir is driven by the introduction of five new direct routes, boosting seat availability by over 200%. This connectivity strategy with Germany contributes to build year-round demand to Agadir, enhancing both tourist arrivals and spending from this key inbound market to Morocco.
German arrivals to Agadir have surged by up to 370% during 2023 last quarter and first of 2024 compared to the semester immediately preceding the period analysed, driven by the launch of five new direct routes connecting Germany to this Moroccan destination. This connectivity boost, which increased available seats by over 200%, has not only enhanced year-round tourism from Germany to Agadir, but also capitalized on shoulder and off-season demand.
Travel and tourism accounts for 7% of Morocco’s gross domestic product, as stated by official sources; in fact. according to Moroccan tourism authorities, in 2023 Morocco welcomed a record 14.5 million tourists, 700 thousand of them were Germans. The German inbound travel represents the 4th largest international source market for Moroccan tourism, and the country expects to receive one million German visitors by 2025. “The significance of German market for Morocco as a destination stems from its considerable yet largely untapped potential, which, although growing rapidly, remains underexploited compared to the more established French and Spanish markets”, explains Mehdi Benghanem, Director for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland at Moroccan National Tourist Office (ONMT).
Air connectivity is a crucial factor in achieving this objective, especially when considering German demand, that are keen on travelling with the least stopovers to their chosen destinations. As Benghanem indicates, “air capacity between Morocco and Germany has grown steadily since 2023, -with the introduction of direct Condor flights to Agadir and Lufthansa’s (Discover and Eurowings) to Marrakech-, but connectivity is still insufficient and remains our primary lever for achieving our ambitious targets for the German market”. To attain such goals, ONMT will rely on “the long-term commitment of German airlines to Morocco, and the concrete plans to expand the connectivity network with new routes in the near future”.
In the light of German travellers’ preferences, our team conducted an analysis of seats availability, connectivity, arrivals and spending to gauge direct flights’ impact in reaching Morocco’s goal, increasing German travellers’ arrivals to the country, and more specifically to Agadir. In fact, Germany represents the third inbound market to Agadir, one of the most popular destinations in Morocco, a balanced combination of sun and beach, culture, gastronomy and nature attractions that appeals to visitors from all over the world.
“Enhanced air connectivity opens a myriad of opportunities to fuel German demand to Agadir, either based on holiday packages to enjoy sun and beach stays, or combining seaside resorts with other experiences, especially during fall and winter season in Europe”, explains Carlos Cendra, Partner and Director of Marketing and Communications at Mabrian.
Germany is the third best-connected European market to Agadir
According to Mabrian’s data, global inbound air capacity to Agadir surged by 24% in the first quarter of 2024, compared to 2023 same period. The primary contributors are Germany (+213%), United Kingdom (nearly +50%), and France (+11%). Conversely, Spain, Portugal, and Italy cut on seats availability in this period, compared to the previous year.
This means that Germany is the third best-connected European market to Agadir (after UK and France) and, by far, the one that grew the most year over year, as in 2023, Germany added five new direct connections multiplying by more than three the available seats to this Moroccan destination.
Eight direct routes connect Germany and Agadir: three already operating in 2023 (Dusseldorf, Frankfurt and Baden-Baden, increasing capacity +105%, +77%, and +182%, respectively), and the five new ones (Hamburg, Cologne/Bonn, Munich, Stuttgart and Hannover) that started operations by mid and late 2023.
Mabrian data shows that Ryanair increased its capacity from Germany to Agadir by +140%; whereas Condor, TUI, and Eurowings launched new routes from Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart, and Hannover. The connectivity network built as a result is evenly distributed in the German territory (except for the East of the country), especially the new routes, which is helping boost arrivals from Germany to Agadir.
“This connectivity strategy proves to be successful not only in terms of year-round arrivals, but especially beyond summer season, as taps into demand trends from German travellers during shoulder and off-season”, Cendra says.
The case of Hamburg – Agadir connection: all about perfect timing
A good case that exemplifies the success of this connectivity strategy is the new flight Hamburg – Agadir operated by Condor, launched on October 30th, 2023, that operated until May 2024, leveraging the European late fall and winter demand German arrivals to Agadir increased up to 370%, compared to the second and third quarter of 2023, and subsequently decreased after the flight stop operations. In Cendra’s opinion, these results “shows to what extent a direct route beyond peak season can help boost off-season demand from key source markets to a traditional seasonal destination.”
As a result, German spending in Agadir increased thanks to this connectivity boost. In fact, in the last quarter of 2023 and the first in 2024, total spending at the destination rose significantly and, in particular, during the first three months of this year, spending was twice as high as the total of any of two semesters between April to September 2023.
As Mabrian’s spokesperson points out, the strategy of Agadir connectivity network with Germany shows that “by understanding the booking patterns and travel habits of any destination’s key source markets, increased arrivals can turn into more spending in destination, which ultimately implies that return on investment on promotional campaigns really pays off, and seasonality can be beaten, fostering a more satisfactory experience for all travellers visiting the destination throughout the year”.
The connectivity strategy deployed in Agadir reflects the efforts Moroccan authorities are mobilising to grow German visitation and spending in the coming years, including not only reinforcing air connectivity, but also enhancing tourism products and services by developing, along with German tour operators, attractive tourism offerings across all segments (seaside, gastronomy, nature, culture, golf, etc). ONMT is also fully committed to promoting the many unique experiences Germans can discover and enjoy in Morocco, “to bring the best of our country and inspire German travellers in coming years”, concludes Benghanem.
