Head of KAC Beirut Office Qais Al-Shatti told KUNA the office kept managing urgent business throughout the recent protests, but only resumed full operation after the end of the opposition protests in nearby Riad El-Solh Square with the reaching of the Doha Accord. Al-Shatti said May was a very difficult month, with Beirut Airport closed, but KAC is now ready to re-open its office in Bhamdoun as well, to serve the Mount Lebanon region.

"Kuwait-Lebanon bookings are 100 percent full, which indicates Kuwaitis are again looking forward to a summer in Lebanon," he said. He said he expects as much as 50,000 Kuwaiti tourists to Lebanon this year, and this is to be added to Lebanese nationals flying home for the holiday. The number of passengers flying from Kuwait to Lebanon is expected around a daily 1,500 for the next two months. The Lebanese Ministry of Tourism meanwhile forecast over 1.3 million tourists visiting the state by end of 2008.

The Ministry of Tourism in Lebanon reported last month that over 750 thousand Lebanese expatriates are expected to show up this summer. This the ministry declared could be a record year for Lebanon. Thousands of tourists fled the country in 2006 because of the war between Hezbollah and Israel

Lebanon is one of the most attractive countries in the world for tourism. With mountains as high as 3088 meters ( 10125 FT) and with the Mediterranean sea bordering its entire western border , and a moderate climate that has distinct four seasons, and a Lebanese hospitality that is second to none , very few countries in the world can match it .

Tags: Kuwait, Lebanon, source: Kuna, Tourism, Ya Libnan