Irish airline Ryanair has inaugurated a new route connecting Madrid to Dakhla, with flights operating twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The maiden flight landed at Dakhla airport, carrying both Moroccan and international tourists, marking a significant enhancement in air connectivity between Morocco and Spain. This development is part of a memorandum of understanding between the Moroccan National Tourism Office and Ryanair. The launch was celebrated with a ceremony attended by local officials and tourism sector representatives. Ryanair now joins Royal Air Maroc, Pinter Canarias, and Transavia as the fourth airline to offer direct international flights to Dakhla. Othmane Amer, president of the Regional Tourism Council of Oued El Dahab, expressed optimism about the new route's potential to boost air connectivity to Dakhla, a city experiencing notable growth in tourism. Similarly, Ahmed Abdellaoui, head of the Regional Tourism Council, highlighted that the Madrid-Dakhla route would help showcase the region's tourism potential and attract substantial foreign investment. In addition to the Madrid route, another flight connecting Dakhla to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands is set to commence this month, also with two weekly flights. These new routes are expected to double Dakhla airport's current international capacity, offering nearly 47,000 seats and positioning Spain as the primary market for Dakhla, surpassing France. Air transport is a key component of the Tourism Roadmap 2023-2026, as outlined in the Moroccan National Tourism Office's initiative «Light in Action». The expansion of flight routes aims to further promote Moroccan tourist destinations, reinforcing the country's position as a leading travel hub.
