The summer of 2022 will be hot, very hot according to predictions. It’s not so much because of its heat wave, but other ingredients, sources of extreme heat, are there ready to add their flames, just to fan the fire. Their common denominator is the word increase as a price increase, not to say soaring and staying in the tone of the approach.
That said, in this cacophony where everything is increasing, hydrocarbons, foodstuffs in short, this increasingly expensive life, we must expect a scorching summer vacation. And holidays, let’s talk a little about these hundreds of thousands of Moroccans residing abroad (MRE) whose launch of Operation Marhaba 2022 is scheduled for June 5 and who will deign to make the trip from the different countries of ‘Europe after two years where Lady Covid has raged as she saw fit.
Nice surprises await them on arrival in perspective, from the northern shore of the Mediterranean in Spain. Indeed and slyly, ferry ticket prices are soaring to their chagrin. And for good reason, the Ferries between Spain and Morocco show their ambitions on the rise through more expensive tickets. In question, the leitmotif which is currently looping, conflict in Ukraine, fuel prices… To infuriate the USFP deputy Aïcha El Gourgi in the Hemicycle who did not spare the Minister of Tourism, Crafts and the Social and Solidarity Economy Fatim-Zahra Ammor as for that.
For the socialist, the price policy practiced by Spain and Morocco is a brake on the revival of tourism. Indeed, in addition to a surge in fuel prices and their impact on the daily life of citizens, port taxes have emerged as soon as borders and maritime links reopen. On this side of the shore, they amount to 9 euros while to the north it is three times more.
For the crossing and depending on the ports, the prices for a single trip can reach up to more than 50%, which the MP did not hesitate to remind the Minister. A Tanger-ville Tarifa ticket now costs 314 euros excluding tax for one vehicle and three occupants and 276 euros from Tanger Med for the same destination. Aïcha El Gourgi lamented that a journey seven times longer Barcelona-Ibiza costs only 198 euros, but there is a Spanish-Spanish linen. History will say that Fatim-Zahra Ammor kicked the question.
While waiting for our MREs and other Moroccans who love summering for Spain, will have to revise their vacation budget this summer on the rise. However, everything was set to succeed in this Marhaba operation with, in anticipation of its launch, a total of 32 ships mobilized on all the shipping lines linking Moroccan ports to Spanish, French and Italian ports. The ferries will have a total capacity of around 478,000 passengers and 123,000 cars, through 571 weekly trips.
The maritime lines with Spain, which represents 95% of passenger traffic, will see the assignment of 23 ships, including 14 intended for passengers on the main line Tangier Med – Algeciras, in addition to two ships dedicated to the transport of goods ( trucks), according to the official statement, adding that these ships make it possible to ensure 47 daily trips, with a capacity of approximately 40,000 passengers and 11,000 cars, an increase of 4% compared to 2019.
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