Despite a very tense situation in southern Lebanon, expatriates were present to celebrate the Adha holiday in Lebanon. Planes were fully booked; guest houses, restaurants, and concerts were also full. This offers a promising preview of the summer season, a cornerstone of the Lebanese economy.
Lebanese expatriates are determined, come hell or high water, to make the most of these moments of family joy by the sea, in the countryside or in the Lebanese mountains. They would not miss this few-day trip to their homeland for the world. In fact, around 14,000 people arrived daily at Beirut International Airport (BIA) over the Adha holiday, according to figures released by the BIA.
The President of the Union of Travel Agency Owners, Jean Abboud, confirms these facts to This Is Beirut. He indicates that flights to Lebanon were full, showing an 11% increase compared to last year’s Adha period. He emphasizes that airlines operated additional flights. Thus, MEA increased flights from Dubai to 6 per day, while Emirates Airlines increased theirs to 5 per day. A total of thirteen flights from Dubai landed in Beirut during these few days.
Similarly, Ramzi Salman, President of the Union of Guest House Owners, expressed satisfaction with the Adha holiday, assuring This Is Beirut that guest houses had an occupancy rate ranging between 85% and 90%. The clients were a mix of locals, Lebanese diaspora, embassy personnel and a few foreign tourists who represented about 5% of the clientele. So, does the summer look promising? “Yes, but we live day to day. We have many reservations for the summer, but everything can change at any moment if something happens security-wise,” says Salman.
Meanwhile, the President of the Federation of Tourist and Hotel Owners’ Unions, Pierre Achkar, told This Is Beirut that hotels experienced very little movement, with an occupancy rate not exceeding 50%, whereas before the Gaza war and its spillover into southern Lebanon, it fluctuated between 80 and 100% during the holidays. The clients are mainly Lebanese expatriates, Iraqis and to a lesser extent, Jordanians. Regarding the summer, Achkar estimates it will be similar to last winter, with higher occupancy rates, but “this is not the Lebanon we know,” he laments.
Regarding restaurants, bars, beaches, and nightclubs, the Restaurant Owners’ Union assures This Is Beirut that the atmosphere is “positive.” The restaurants were all packed, as were the rooftops that keep proliferating. Concerts were sold out, notably Amr Diab’s. “The movement was very good in Beirut, Batroun, and along the coast,” affirms union member Khaled Naha, adding that “without the war in southern Lebanon and the lingering anxiety in Lebanon, the sector could achieve record figures, higher than those of 2023.”
