Post-Arab Spring Tunisia is optimistic than ever, forecasting a growth in tourist arrivals.

"The situation in our country has returned to normal and our goal now is to reach at year-end 6 million tourists, 7 million in 2013 and reach, in 2016, 10 million international visitors and a total 4 billion euros foreign currency revenues, " says Elyes Fakhfakh, Tunisian Minister of Tourism. 

Fakhfakh notes that Tunisia has everything it takes to recover a major role in the international tourism arena and to reassess its' image. "The priority now is to get out as soon as possible from the stereotype of Low Cost destination and try to capture also high level tourism", he says.

With over one thousand kilometers of coastline, resorts will remain the dominant aspect, but the intention of the ministry is to extend with "a greater development of thalassotherapy, spas, golf, cultural tours and ecotourism," announces Fakhfakh. 

Meanwhile, having secured more than 51 per cent increase in arrivals in the first quarter 2012 compared to the previous year, the ministry also traces out a balance of cruise tourism, a sector that, from January to April, has recorded a total of 78 thousand cruise.

 Lotfi El Ajmi, a board member of the Organization of the Mediterranean cruise tourism MedCruise, anounces this is a good start. "It is about 60 percent of total passengers in the same period of 2011," says El Ajmi, "at the end of this year the goal is to reach a total of 450 thousand cruise passengers. If the trend continues to be positive, we hope by the end of 2014 to replicate the record balance recorded in 2010 - 900 thousand passengers. The decisive step will include the post-revolutionary Tunisia in the itineraries of ships of the major cruise lines".

Source: TTG Italy

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