Egyptian experts expect a 30% increase in tourist flow to the country this year. According to Al-Ahram Weekly, according to the World Tourism Organization (WTO), Egypt ranked second in the list of growing tourist destinations in 2017.
Let us recall that in mid-March The world's leading tourism exhibition ITB Berlin was held in the German capital, and delegates from Egypt also took part. They returned from the event full of confidence in the success of the country's tourism sector this year.
Egyptian Minister of Tourism Rania Al-Mashat met with local and foreign representatives of the travel and tourism industry.
She stressed that the ministry pays great attention to training in the tourism sector to improve the quality of services provided. According to the head of the department, today 60 percent of employees in the country's tourism sector are young people aged 17 to 35.
As part of business contacts, Al-Mashat proposed organizing trips for German journalists to Egypt so that German citizens could see for themselves the stability of the state in various sectors of the economy.
"The ministry is interested in promoting new tourist resorts, and the recently completed archaeological excavations in the south of the country could contribute to a surge in tourist trips to the historical regions of Upper Egypt. New cities, including New El-Alamein on the Arabian Gulf coast, are ready to offer international-class hotels," the minister said.
Minister of Civil Aviation Sherif Fathi and Al-Mashat also met with representatives of German airlines that operate flights to Egypt, including Air Germania, Sun Express and Small Planet.
To encourage German airlines to increase their flights to Egypt, Egyptian officials announced that the Egyptian government is temporarily willing to waive taxes on flights. "The taxes, estimated at $4,500 per flight, will be lifted for a year, starting in October," they said at the meeting.
In addition, Al-Mashat met with the tourism ministers of Greece, Morocco, Jordan and the United States to coordinate cooperation efforts. The ministers agreed to encourage tourism between the countries.
"German tour operators want to return to Egypt in full. Egyptian tourism workers must focus on improving the quality of services at airports, hotels and other tourist destinations," said Hossam Al-Shaer, head of travel agencies Sunrise and Blue Sky.
He added that information campaigns should be carried out to attract more tourists.
"We have been attending ITB for the past 20 years because it is the largest gathering of tour operators in the world. We usually discuss the next tourist season. This year, I have the impression that the demand for Egyptian tourist destinations is growing. We expect a 30 percent increase in foreign inflows this year," Al-Shaer said.
In turn, Magdy Sadek, Member of the Chamber of Egyptian Travel Agencies, said: "We went to ITB to change the image of Egypt. It's not just about heritage and beaches. The country's religious tourism is also very rich. Egypt is a sacred land, and we proposed the Holy Family Route in Egypt to be included in the programs of German tour operators. The route includes seven to eight places through which the Holy Family passed during their stay in Egypt."
Source: trn-news.ru
