CAIRO: Egypt is looking to have a strong tourism season following the return of Albanian visitors and its goal to receive 1 million Russian holidaymakers in six months.
On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin canceled a 2015 decree banning the country’s airlines from flying to Egyptian resorts.
The Egyptian Federation of Tourist Chambers said the decision to lift the ban had had a positive effect and that the number of flights may reach 300 a week.
Hossam Hazaa, head of the federation, said 3.1 million Russians visited Egypt during 2014 and that they represented 33 percent of the total number of tourists who visited the country that year.
He said Egypt expected to receive around 1 million Russian tourists by the end of this year and that precautionary measures had led to an increase in the number of visitors from eastern Europe to the Red Sea and South Sinai.
Security measures at airports, health protocols in hotels, and vaccinated workers in the sector had created a positive image for visitors coming from western European countries, he added.
He said Egypt's hotels and tourist villages knew the needs of the Russian tourists and would work to fulfill them.
Mohamed Haidar, Egypt's ambassador to Albania, announced the return of tourist traffic between the two countries.
He said there were already two charter flights a week from Tirana to Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada. The flights also covered travelers from Kosovo following the expansion of major Albanian companies to that market.
He said the promising numbers reflected tourists’ great interest in Egypt as one of the most important destinations for 2021, based on the country’s precautionary measures to ensure visitor safety.
He said another important step taken last week was the launch of a regular seasonal flight between the two capitals for the first time to support mutual tourism.
He said occupancy rates indicated a positive development in the tourism and transport movement, which could be built on to achieve a good basis for the sustainability of trips in the future.
That, he added, would have a positive impact on the tourism sector and also support all aspects of bilateral cooperation between Egypt and Albania, especially in the areas of trade and investment.
Haidar said these developments came within the framework of intensive efforts made by the embassy over the past few months to brief major Albanian tourism companies and agencies about the facilities provided by Egypt, as well as a successful visit by Egypt's deputy tourism minister to Tirana.
