Are Mediterranean upheavals killing sustainable tourism

The darkest hour is before the dawn – Djemma el Fna Marrakesh

Egypt tourism figures down: Morocco bomb: tourists targeted in Portugal and Tunisia: Greek riots: where will it end?

New figures from Egypt indicate that after a great deal of hope and some massive investment in sustainable tourism, arrivals have dropped like a stone –

The latest government figures show that tourist arrivals slumped 46 per cent in the first quarter of 2011. Mounir Fakhry Abdennour, minister of tourism, told the UK Financial Times that tourism losses to the end of April were $2bn. He said tourism was not wiped out but it had been significantly reduced with occupancy rates down to an average of 35 per cent.

In Morocco, after the bombing in the major tourism centre and World Heritage site of Djemma el Fna, a couple have now been arrested. Will there be more violence?

Britain has updated its travel advice to Portugal to warn against the risk of violent attacks after a tourist was beaten up in the Portuguese town of Faro two weeks ago and died from his injuries on Wednesday, killed in a suspected gang attack.

In Tunisia, the suspected Al-Qaeda militants who were killed in a gunfight with Tunisian security forces were planning to attack tourist sites, said a Tunisian newspaper last Thursday.

And, as a result of the Greek debt crisis, there are ongoing riots in Greek streets and threats of strikes.

The European financial crisis is, of course, not over and will certainly have repercussions in Spain.
The picture for the Med could hardly be worse although, even now, there may be light on the horizon.

The investments in sustainable tourism in the area may well be the most sustainable of all.
From an environmental and economic perspective, future lower green operating costs will leverage the deflation ensuing from financial trauma and IMF loans into brilliantly good offers for tourists.

From a social and cultural perspective, tourists really benefiting local communities and respecting local cultures will not be seen as rich foreign targets.

From a development perspective, in countries with such deep cultures and beautiful sights, tourism offers remarkable opportunities for economies, empowerment and emancipation plus tremendous potential for social inclusion.

So, maybe this is the beginning of a real sustainable tourism resurgence and not, even a hiccough
.
Valere Tjolle
Valere Tjolle is editor of the Sustainable Tourism Report Suite – special offers HERE