The Tourism Ministry and the Tourism Promotion Authority launched new promotional offers in early March in a bid to attract Arabs to Egyptian touristic destinations.
Tourism Minister Hesham Zaazou said the ministry and the Tourism Promotion Authority are paying special attention to Arab tourism. He pointed to new offers with special prices for Arabs, starting from weekend packages that are applied from Wednesday to Saturday.
Zaazou's comments were made during a meeting with representatives of Arab media on the sidelines of the Sixth Arab Tourism Media Forum, organized by the Arab Center for Tourism Media in Cairo, Luxor and Fayoum. The forum began on 2 February and will continue till 7 February.
Zaazou added that his ministry is coordinating with the aviation sector to open up further prospects for Arab tourism through establishing direct flights from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to Sharm al-Sheikh.
There are also plans to run flights from other Arab countries to Hurghada, starting with a flight from Jordan to Hurghada in the upcoming weeks.
In another effort to attract Arab tourism, the Tourism Ministry launched a campaign under the title "Wahshtona" (we miss you), starring many Arab princesses, including Sheikha Fariha Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah (sister of the Emir of Kuwait) and Hind Al Qasimi (wife of Sharjah Ruler) in addition to other Arab women leaders. It is hoped that the new campaign will encourage Arab tourism and increase the inflow of tourists.
Zaazou stressed that tourism from Europe is not a substitute for inter-Arab tourism, which constitute 20 percent of the volume of tourism to Egypt.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
