Essential Morocco is pleased to present the following update on Morocco's Plan Azur program.  The Plan Azur is Morocco's tourism initiative with a goal of increasing annual tourist visits to the country to 10 million by the year 2010.  Six new generation world class upscale leisiure resorts are being built along Morocco's pristine coastlines.

The Taghazout Resort, near Agadir, on the south Atlantic coast is the latest master developer contract to be awarded by the Government.

Taghazout's site is located 15 km away from Agadir, the first seaside resort of the Kingdom, and 300 km from Marrakech, the first cultural destination of the country and 170 km from the town of Essaouira .

The air service to the site is provided by the international airport of al Massira in Agadir, located 40 km away from this site.

At present, this airport records an annual average traffic of 1.135.000 passengers, that is to say only 40% of its capacity.

 Site
Apart from its assets and its attractive and picturesque sceneries, Taghazout's site is endowed with a semi-arid type climate, and it records a low level of rainfall: less than 40 days per year and more than 3000 hours of sunshine a year.

Amenager
Taghazout's new tourist station will be developed by the Colony Capital/ Satocan / Lopesan Group.

Program
Taghazout's station, in the South of Agadir, will be equipped with 21000 beds. As a comparison, at the end of 2005, Agadir offered around 26000 classified hotel beds and guests houses. This station will have also at its disposal two golf courses, a medina with business spaces, handicraft and different activities, a spa, a clinic (argano-therapy) and an institute of the argan tree.

The total amount of investment
  In-site planning : 2,2 billion DH;
  Direct investment : 71,8 billion DH;
  Investment of other developers : 3 billion DH;
  Off-site investment in terms of infrastructures : 0,4 million DH.

Key-dates
  Launching of work : 2007;
  Opening of the first hotel : 2009.

Phases and the project length
   4 stages ( 10 years).