Hotel occupancy in Egypt’s Red Sea resorts on the rise

Tourists enjoying beach life at the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. (AFP)

• Cairo hotel occupancy also rose to about 45 percent, from 27 percent in the first half of 2020

CAIRO: Hotel occupancy rose to 35-40 percent in Egypt’s Red Sea resorts of Sharm el-Sheikh and Hurghada in the first six months of the year, from 20-23 percent a year earlier, a tourism official said on Tuesday.
In the capital Cairo, hotel occupancy rose to about 45 percent, from 27 percent in the first half of 2020, the official told Reuters.
Tourism is an important source of foreign revenue and contributes up to 15 percent of Egypt’s gross domestic product but was brought to a near standstill by the coronavirus pandemic.
The government had placed a 50 percent occupancy limit on hotels, restaurants and cultural values to counter the spread of COVID-19, but announced earlier this week that it would raise the limit to 70 percent.