BEIRUT: Tourism Minister Avedis Guidanian has said he expected a significant number of Arab and foreign tourists to spend their summer vacation in Lebanon this year.

Speaking to MTV Monday, the minister promised that tourism in Lebanon would return to its former glory when millions of tourists used to pour into the country each year.

He vowed that the Tourism Ministry would closely monitor prices and services and look after the well-being of tourists.

Lebanon has seen a sharp drop in the number of tourists since the outbreak of war in Syria as well as the political paralysis that struck the country for many years.

In 2008 and 2009, over 2 million tourists from the Gulf Arab states flocked to Lebanon, boosting the countrys GDP and improving the revenues of its hotels.

Guidanian said the number of hotel reservations and flight bookings all indicated that Lebanon was set to witness a good tourism season. He added that the ministry had drafted a four-point plan to boost tourism incentives.

The minister stressed that the open-sky policy would create competition and reduce the prices of plane tickets. But at the same time he underlined the need to continue protecting Middle East Airlines.

He also criticized some of the news media that he said had tried to give a false and negative image of tourism in Lebanon.

Last week, the Saudi ambassador to Lebanon told the Central News Agency that some 300,000 Saudi visitors were expected to travel to Lebanon this year after the kingdom lifted a 15-month travel warning in February.

Envoy Walid Bukharis comments came during a visit to the Tripoli home of journalist Badih Karhani where he spoke about the depth of the relationship between Saudi Arabia and Lebanon.

In November 2017, Saudi Arabia warned its citizens against traveling to Lebanon and advised those already in the country to leave. Kuwait and Bahrain issued similar advisories. The warnings were issued after Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced his shock resignation, which he later withdrew.

Bukhari previously cited an improvement in Lebanons security situation as a reason for lifting the ban. The move is expected to give a badly needed boost to the weak tourism sector.

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