Tunis, Mar 24 (IANS): A cruise ship has docked in a Tunisian port for the first time since 2019, signalling the recovery of the tourism recovery in the North African country.

The cruise ship, Spirit of Discovery, docked on Wednesday at the port of La Goulette with 724 tourists on board, most of whom are British, Xinhua news agency quoted Minister of Tourism and Handicrafts Mohamed Moez Belhassen as saying to the media here.

About 400 tourists left the ship for excursions to Sousse, Kairouan, the Medina and Sidi Bousaid before leaving the country for Spain at 5 p.m..

Belhassen stressed the importance of the return of cruises for Tunisia's tourism, as well as other sectors such as transport, crafts and culture.

The Minister said that a second cruise is expected in April and 40 others throughout this year.

Tourism in Tunisia generated around 19.4 million arrivals per year in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, which made it one of the most visited countries in Africa.

In 2000, there were 197,400 hotel beds in roughly 95,977 rooms with an occupancy rate at 56 per cent. At least 5,057,193 visited Tunisia that year.