The President of the Union of Tourism Syndicates, Pierre Achkar, announced in a statement that "as the end of July approaches, the tourist season can be described as good, expecting an increase in tourist activity in August, with the arrival of more expatriates and tourists." Achkar stated: "It is true that revenues are good and expatriates and tourists are present in large numbers, but by the end of the month, and upon evaluating the results, it became clear to those in charge of the sector that the cost of diesel for electricity generation and purchasing water represents a very heavy burden on tourism establishments, depriving them of the opportunity to recover the losses incurred during the winter."
Achkar pointed out that "Beirut enjoys high occupancy rates throughout the week due to attracting Iraqi, Jordanian, and Egyptian tourists, while areas outside Beirut rely on expatriates." He also noted that "internal tourism is active but only for three days a week, where occupancy rates reach 75 percent, while in the remaining days of the week, they drop below 50 percent."
He attributed the weakness of internal tourism to "the economic collapse that Lebanon is witnessing and the loss of the middle class that had its funds trapped in banks." He added, "Moreover, banking restrictions have significantly harmed the tourism sector this season, prompting many establishments in various sectors to avoid dealing with credit cards."
