Egypt receives 126k tourists since reopening resorts on 1 July – minister

Egypt received 126,000 tourists since it has reopened its seaside resorts of Sharm El-Sheikh, Hurghada, and Marsa Matrouh to international flights and foreign tourists on 1 July.

This came after a three-month stoppage due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, said minister of tourism and antiquities Khaled El-Anany on Monday.

El-Anany made these remarks during a meeting headed by Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly in Cairo on Monday. The meeting was attended by Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organisation Zurab Pololikashvili.

One suspected coronavirus case was detected among the arriving tourists, he added.

“This is a great achievement that demonstrates the success and efficiency of the procedures introduced by the ministry,” the Egyptian minister said.

During the meeting, Moustafa Madbouly said the pandemic hit the world at a time Egypt’s tourism was breaking its own records in terms of the number of arriving tourists.

“It will take some time to pick up the same pace due to tourists’ reluctance to travel at the time being,” Madbouly said.