IMHO Syria shares a lot similarities with countries like Greece, Egypt, Turkey and Spain, that have successfully managed to become household mass tourist destinations since the 1970s:
- Excellent location: comfortable 4 hours flying distance from most European capitals, as well as the Mid-East and Africa.
- Immensely rich but varied and vastly untapped cultural heritage: ranging from Bronze Age sites to Roman ruins to Ottoman heritage. Many sites were never really properly excavated and the ones that were, only 30% 40% in most cases.
- The country had its own unique Arab culture (including unique Syrian Arab historical sites) which differentiated it most other Mediterranean destinations.
- The culture (from what I know), was similar to Turkey, Spain, and Greece, in others words relatively liberal and open to foreigners and visitors.
- Relative peace: unlike neighbours Israel, Lebanon (and even Cyprus and Turkey) it had in fact maintained peace for a large part of its modern existence
- Mediterranean sea access: enough coastline to develop the country as a beach destination...?
So with a lack of Oil why didn't the Assads do the next most obvious (and laziest) thing and end up exploiting the tourist potential to the max, transforming Syria into a household destination alongside the likes of Turkey, Greece or Cyprus et al?
I know there was some tourism to Syria pre-Civil War but it was mostly a certain narrow demographic [i.e. Westerners seeking art history, international Islamic students studying Quran etc] but absolutely nothing like the millions from all demographics that flood Greece, Turkey, Egypt every year...
So... Were there sanctions in place that prevented such mass commercialization of tourism? Or does the reason lie in something more cultural/ideological unique to Syria? Or were there other reasons that tourists didn't readily take to holidaying in Syria compared to the likes of Turkey and Greece?
Note: I don't know anything about Syria's recent history so asking this question completely blind. Feel free to correct any wrong/false assumptions I may have made above!
Thanks!
I believe I can at least answer the political aspect of why Syria never became a hotspot for Western tourists. Hopefully others can add on about other aspects as well.
Syria, unfortunately, has been in an extremely repressive political state for many years now. It may have the official name of a republic, but in reality, nearly all the power is centered on the al-Assad family and their immediate allies. Hafez al-Assad created one of the most notorious secret police networks (Mukhabarat in Arabic) in the Middle East which he eventually passed on to his son, the current president, Bashar al-Assad. Fear of the Mukhabarat is common and widespread, which is understandable given that, in 1982, the Muslim Brotherhood staged an uprising in the city of Hama. Estimates vary, but scholars say that between 10,000 - 40,000 people died after President Hafez figuratively, and literally in some cases, bulldozed the city to put down the uprising. I can't dive into the current civil war, but I think it is fair to say that the atmosphere of suspicion and fear never really changed.
I do think it is important to note that Syria did experience a fair bit of conflict throughout the 20th century. In addition to the massacre of Hama that I already mentioned, Syria fought in 3 wars with Israel, participated in the Lebanese Civil War, and has the unfortunate luck of being in a conflict torn part of the world.
You mention that Syria has a lot of things going for it in the tourism department, however, why would people go to Syria, when there are the other, more enticing options you mentioned? Egypt may have also been a repressive, authoritarian republic that also fought the same wars with Israel, but its cultural heritage is far more well known. The Pyramids of Giza were one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and frankly, Syria has nothing nearly so well known. Turkey has been fighting an off and on conflict with the Kurdish PKK since the 80's, but that is mostly localized to the southeast regions bordering Syria and Iraq. Luckily for Turkey, its a lot bigger than Syria, and its closer to Europe. So, while Syria might have a lot to offer, Turkey can offer just as much and its tourism centers of Istanbul, Ephesus, etc are more distant from the conflict and instability in the region. Like I said, I am sure there are other factors as well, but I don't think there can be any doubt that the political situation in Syria has hindered its ability to attract western tourists.
My sources are primarily these two, but I can offer more if necessary.
The Modern Middle East: A History by James L. Gelvin
The Middle East by Ellen Lust