Mauritius Tourism Minister Calls for 'Plan B' to Hit 1.4M Visitor Target

Mauritius Tourism Minister Richard Duval has urged the island's hospitality industry to develop a contingency plan to protect the sector against future international crises, warning that relying on a single strategy leaves the country exposed when global disruptions strike.

Duval made the call at the 53rd annual general assembly of the Association des Hôteliers et Restaurateurs de l'Ile Maurice, known as AHRIM, the main industry body representing hotels and restaurants across the island. The meeting brought together leading figures from Mauritian tourism to assess the state of the sector and plan for the year ahead.

The minister set an ambitious target for 2026: more than 1.4 million visitor arrivals and revenue of 103.3 billion rupees, which would represent a record year for Mauritian tourism. Achieving that figure would surpass the previous tourism milestones the island has recorded since its post-pandemic recovery.

Duval's call for a Plan B reflects growing unease across the global travel industry about the impact of geopolitical tensions, economic slowdowns in key source markets, and unpredictable events such as the Covid-19 pandemic, which devastated Mauritius tourism between 2020 and 2021. The island relies heavily on visitors from France, the United Kingdom, Germany and Reunion Island, markets that can be quickly affected by recessions, airline disruptions or political instability.

While the minister did not detail exactly what a contingency plan would look like, the message to hoteliers and restaurateurs was clear: the industry must diversify its strategies, whether by targeting new source markets, investing in crisis communication, or reducing dependence on a single type of traveller.

Mauritius recorded roughly 1.3 million tourist arrivals in 2023 as the sector continued its rebound, and the government has been pushing to consolidate and grow that figure. The tourism industry is one of the three pillars of the Mauritian economy alongside financial services and manufacturing, contributing billions of rupees in foreign exchange earnings and employing tens of thousands of people directly and indirectly.

AHRIM plays a central role in coordinating between the private sector and government on issues ranging from air access and room rates to staff training and environmental standards.

What this means: For hotel operators, restaurant owners and everyone working in Mauritian hospitality, the minister's message is a prompt to plan for disruption rather than assume smooth growth. For investors and visitors, it signals that the government is aware of the sector's vulnerability and is pushing for a more resilient long-term model, even as it chases record arrivals in the short term.

Source: Le Defi Media