On Tuesday it became known that the Russian carrier Aeroflot will resume regular flights between Moscow and Cairo from April 11. Flights will be operated three times a week on an Airbus A320 from Terminal F of Sheremetyevo Airport. At the moment, ticket sales are already open, The cost of a round-trip ticket in economy class from Moscow will be 21.9 thousand rubles. Also, the Egyptian national carrier Egypt Air announced the opening of regular flights from Cairo to Moscow from April 12. The airline will also operate three weekly flights.
Tour operators await resorts
Despite the opening of Aeroflot flights, most major tour operators are not ready to form tours to Egypt with a flight via Cairo. Thus, the press service of the tour operator Anex Tour told the Interfax-Tourism portal that at the moment, tours to Egypt are not represented in the assortment. "We do not plan to sell a tour product based on regular transportation via Cairo, due to the length of the transfer to the resorts and the increase in the cost of packages," the company said.
Anex Tour noted that active sales will be launched as soon as permission for direct charter flights to the resorts appears. "We are ready for Egypt to return, the host company has already prepared ground handling. In addition, tourists from Ukraine and Kazakhstan have not suspended their visits to Egypt, which is why DMCs (host companies) are working at full capacity," the press service said.
Biblio-Globus also confirmed that they will not offer tours to Egypt, despite the opening of Aeroflot flights. "Until the opening of air traffic with Egyptian resorts, we do not yet have specific plans for the destination. We are not currently offering a tour product for Russians," the tour operator's press service reported.
Intourist reported that tours to Egypt based on a flight to Cairo are not currently offered by the tour operator. "Today, we are studying the situation and assessing the feasibility of starting to form a product at this stage. The decision has not yet been made, since there is no complete information about the volumes and cost of possible flights, except for the nearest dates," Intourist reported.
The company believes that the declared volume of flights to Cairo is minimal for now. “Two airlines that operate up to 4-6 flights a week is a very small number that cannot affect the distribution of tourist flows in any way,” the press service noted.
Tour operators Pegas Touristik and TUI Russia also do not plan to sell tours to Egypt with flights via Cairo.
We'll go anyway
The only major tour operator that will take tourists to Egypt is Tez Tour. Sales of tours to the country based on regular air transportation to Cairo with subsequent ground transfer to the resorts have already started.
According to the PR director of the tour operator Larisa Akhanova, the cost of a 7-night tour to Hurghada with accommodation in a 5* hotel will be $1317 for two, to Sharm el-Sheikh - $1495. It includes the cost of air tickets and transfer by car or bus. At the same time, check-in at hotels will be on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.
L. Akhanova also said that Tez Tour plans to create an excursion program to Alexandria, where tourists, if they wish, will be able to stay at a hotel and swim in the Mediterranean Sea. In this case, about $250 will be added to the basic cost of the tour. "As for the Ein Sukhna resort, the promotion of which on the Russian market was announced by the Ministry of Tourism of Egypt, I can say that it is not in demand among Russians yet, although it is located relatively close to Cairo, a two-hour drive away. It has always been a resort for locals, and perhaps some independent Russian tourists will go there. We are not planning such tours yet," she noted.
Russians are not rushing to Egypt
Despite the opening of sales of tours to Egypt, Tez Tour has not yet noted any particular demand for this product. "I can't say that interest has increased much: people call and ask about Egypt, but this does not translate into specific bookings. Perhaps the situation will change next week," said L. Akhanova.
The press service of the tour operator Intourist also told the Interfax-Tourism portal that, despite the opening of Aeroflot flights, there are practically no questions from tourists about Egypt. "Everyone has already gotten out of the habit of the Egyptian destination, Cairo is not attractive to tourists as a tourist hub, and the cost of tickets for the nearest direct flights is 1.5 times higher than the cost of a flight to Cairo with a transfer. In fact, tourists can buy tickets to Sharm el-Sheikh or Hurghada with a transfer in other countries for the same price, without visiting Cairo," Intourist concluded.
Egypt as a tourist destination was absent from the Russian market for more than two years: air traffic between the countries was closed at the end of 2015 after a terrorist attack in the skies over the Sinai Peninsula. Russian President Vladimir Putin, by his decree of January 2, allowed regular air traffic between Russia and Cairo. On January 4, Rostourism announced that tour operators can form a tourism product to the Arab Republic of Egypt based on regular air traffic with Cairo.
Despite the presidential decree, representatives of the tourism industry have long doubted whether it is possible to sell tourists trips to Egyptian resorts on the terms of regular air transportation to Cairo, since this was not directly stated in the statement. The press service of Rostourism confirmed to the portal Interfax-Tourism on Friday that there is no ban on the sale of such tours.
Source: tourism.interfax.ru
