‘Shou Fi Bi Lebnen’ a Campaign to Boost Lebanon’s Tourism
Under the title “Shu Fi Bi Lebnen” (What’s New in Lebanon) Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud launched a campaign to promote and boost the tourism season, voicing hopes that Gulf countries would review their travel warnings to Lebanon.
The campaign was launched Wednesday at the Phoenicia Hotel in the presence of a number of representatives including Head of the ABC Group Robert Fadel, MEA board Member Marwan Salha, Head of the Syndicate of Maritime Firms Jean Beiruti, Head of the Syndicate of Furnished Apartments Ziad Labban, President of the Syndicate of Rental-Car Agencies in Lebanon Mohammad Daqdouq, Head of Lebanon's Tourism Union Amin Khayyat, Chairman of the Group Aishti Tony Salameh, Chairman of the Board of Directors of City Mall Michel Abche and many more.
In a statement Abboud denounced the attempts to involve “Lebanon’s tourism in politics,” assuring the crucial summer tourism season would not be badly damaged by growing domestic unrest and turmoil in neighboring Syria.
The Minister assured that Lebanon’s tourism season is “doing well,” adding "I am expecting a season similar to last year. Of course we lost more than 300,000 travellers by road because of the unfortunate conditions in Syria.
That travel has basically stopped. But air and sea travel are still fine.”
Lebanon suffered a blow when four Gulf countries warned their citizens not to visit the country after clashes erupted there between supporters and opponents of the uprising in Syria.
However, President Michel Suleiman visited three of the four Gulf countries - Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar- to encourage them to revoke travel warnings. The fourth country is Bahrain
His trip shows how important tourism is to Lebanon, especially its Gulf visitors. Tourism makes up around 16 percent of the country's GDP, and Lebanon's economic growth has already slowed because of the regional unrest.
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