The cost of a trip to Egyptian resorts, including a Moscow-Cairo flight, will start at $650, RIA Novosti reports, citing Deputy Head of the Union of Tourist Chambers of Egypt Mostafa Khelil.
Direct flights are planned to resume in February. air traffic between the capitals of Russia and Egypt, interrupted more than two years ago after the crash of a plane carrying Russian tourists in the skies over the Sinai Peninsula. The resumption of flights to the Egyptian resorts of Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh is currently postponed; the parties will discuss this issue in April 2018.
“The cost of a week-long trip with accommodation in a four-star hotel and a round-trip flight from Moscow to Cairo is expected to start at $650,” Khelil said.
According to him, the task of the tourism sector in Egypt is to create and offer Russian tourists a program that would fully satisfy their wishes, taking into account the experience already accumulated. "Tourism companies have already developed such programs that, as I believe, fully meet the needs of Russian tourists," the agency's interlocutor said.
According to him, the market is currently undergoing a reformatting phase: new tourist programs are appearing and old ones are being revived. "We are trying to ensure that Russian tourists can enjoy their trip while paying an acceptable price," said a representative of the Egyptian tourism sector.
Tourism is one of the main sources of foreign currency income for the Egyptian treasury. According to the country's Ministry of Tourism, before the crash of a Russian plane carrying tourists over Sinai in late October 2015, the tourism industry contributed 11.3% of GDP and provided more than 14% of foreign currency income to the treasury. Russia was in first place in terms of the number of tourists coming to Egypt, followed by Great Britain and Germany in second and third, followed by Italy and France.
After the plane crash, flights to Egyptian resorts from Russia and a number of other countries were suspended for security reasons. Most countries have already restored service to Egyptian resort cities after Egyptian authorities tightened security measures. According to the State Committee for Tourism Development of Egypt, all European and Asian countries and the United States have lifted restrictions on visiting Egypt. Air service to Russia has still not been resumed, and the UK has not yet given permission for flights to Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt.
On December 15, Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov and Egyptian Aviation Minister Sherif Fathy signed a protocol on cooperation in ensuring civil aviation safety in Moscow, which is necessary for opening flights between the countries. The Egyptian Aviation Minister said that air traffic between Moscow and Cairo will be opened on February 1, and the parties will discuss the resumption of charter flights in April.
Source: trn-news.ru
