The Egyptian tourism sector does not expect a significant decline in demand for resort holidays following the bloody terrorist attack at a mosque in northern Sinai, which claimed the lives of more than three hundred people, Seyyed Bali, head of the Chamber of Travel Companies of the Red Sea province in Hurghada, told the Egyptian newspaper Masrawi. RIA Novosti reports.
"There won't be a significant impact on demand. We expected a decline after the terrorist attack in El Wahat (an attack on a special forces unit of the Egyptian Interior Ministry in late October west of Cairo, which, according to various sources, killed between 16 and 58 police officers), which was also major, but that didn't happen... Now terrorism is everywhere, not just in Egypt. Previously, this phenomenon was unique to us, and back then it had an impact. Today, however, clients coming from Europe are well aware that there is terrorism in their countries too, and they are not completely safe there," said a representative of the Egyptian tourism sector.
Sami Suleiman, head of the Nuweiba and Taba Resorts Association of Egypt, shared his confidence with the publication that Egypt's tourist attractions and resort areas are completely safe. "The North Sinai region has been well-known for several years as a hotbed of anti-terrorism efforts; it's very far from the resort areas. Where tourists are, it's safe. Every country in the world faces terrorism, but life there doesn't come to a standstill, and I hope that won't happen here either. Some tourists may cancel their trips, but others will take their place," he said.
At the same time, Hani Gavish, a member of the Nuweiba and Taba Investors Association, believes the attack is more likely to impact local tourism. "I think local tourists who are accustomed to vacationing in Dahab, Nuweiba, and Taba will be afraid to travel to us by land after the attack," he said. Gavish is also confident that the inevitable tightening of security measures at the resorts following this horrific attack will also negatively impact tourists' psychological well-being. "I don't think they'll welcome all these heightened security measures; they'll be afraid," the expert emphasized.
The deadliest terrorist attack in Egyptian history took place last Friday at the Al-Rawda Mosque in northern Sinai, claiming the lives of 305 people, including 27 children and many elderly people. Around 130 people were injured. The terrorists, in Egypt's first attack on a mosque, massacred hundreds of unarmed people attending weekend prayers with unprecedented brutality.
According to the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism, tourism revenue in the first nine months of this year increased by $2,051 billion compared to the same period in 2016, reaching $5.2 billion, while the number of tourists increased by $531 billion. Thus, Egypt's tourism sector has approached its pre-crisis levels following the downing of the Russian plane.
Tourism is one of Egypt's main sources of foreign exchange revenue. 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 11.31 trillion rubles to GDP and generated over 141 trillion rubles in foreign exchange revenue. Russia ranked first in terms of number of tourists visiting Egypt, followed by the United Kingdom and Germany, followed by Italy and France.
Following the plane crash, flights to Egyptian resorts from Russia and several other countries were suspended for safety reasons. Most countries have already restored service to Egyptian resort towns after Egyptian authorities tightened security measures. According to the Egyptian State Tourism Development Authority, all European and Asian countries, as well as the United States, have lifted restrictions on travel to Egypt. Air travel to Russia remains suspended. Furthermore, the United Kingdom has not yet granted permission for flights to Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.
Source: trn-news.ru
