Business | Tourism

Conflict in Lebanon keeps visitors away

Lebanon's tourism industry stands to lose out on billions of dollars this year because of tension that has prompted travel warnings from Gulf states, the tourism minister said on Monday.

  • Reuters
  • Published: 00:36 March 5, 2008
  • Gulf News

Broumana: Lebanon's tourism industry stands to lose out on billions of dollars this year because of tension that has prompted travel warnings from Gulf states, the tourism minister said on Monday.

Joseph Sarkis said the 2008 outlook was "not encouraging" for a sector hit by war, assassinations, bombings, a deep political dispute and civil strife over the last three years.

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain have all advised their citizens against travelling to Lebanon. Riyadh went a step further by advising its nationals to leave.

"The losses could be huge," Sarkis said. The sector earned Lebanon some $1.5-$2 billion last year, well below the $4-$4.5 billion that it should be bringing to the country, he said.

Large percentage

"Without the visits of the Arabs, we will lose a great percentage," Sarkis said. "If they stay away from Leb-anon, what about the Europeans?" he added. Gulf Arabs account for around a fifth of Lebanon's annual visitors.

"Lebanon is losing billions of dollars annually because of the conditions we are passing through," Sarkis said.

Visitors to Lebanon numbered around a million last year, when the country's problems were compounded by an armed Islamist insurrection in the north.

"For 2008, our expectations, unfortunately, are not encouraging," Sarkis said. The tourism sector accounted for about a fifth of Lebanon's gross domestic product before the strife and could contribute up to 12 per cent again if peace returns, Sarkis said.

  • Rate this article
  • Average reader rating (0 votes) 0 Stars
Tools

Emailing an article to friend is a simple way to share a news item. Your friend will receive an email with your name and email address as well any personal message you choose to send.

The information you provide on this page will not be used to send unsolicited emails.

This service is not intended to encourage spam, and action may be taken against individuals who maliciously enter personal details of another individual.

Share this article

More from Tourism

  1. Kempinski official sees delayed recovery

  2. Dubai needs to readjust to ground realities

  3. Sharjah to raise capital for tourism

  4. Abu Dhabi event hopes to see $8.9m worth of deals signed

All articles in Tourism

More from Business

Gulf News
Popular in Business
Way to go this DSF
XPRESS

Way to go this DSF

A fun-filled route to guide you to all the happening dos in town

Business Editor's choice