Cairo's Hanging Church set to open in October

Cairo's Hanging Church set to open in October

Hanging Church in Old Cairo will reopen in October after long process of renovation

Hanging Church,

After four years of restoration work, the Hanging Church is set to officially reopen to the public in mid-October. Antiquities Minister Mamdouh El-Damati announced the reopening on Tuesday during his inspection tour around the different monuments of Mogamaa Al-Adian (religious compound), which includes the Amr Ibn Al-Ass Mosque, Ben Ezra Synagogue and a collection of churches.

This fourth-century edifice reached the end of its restoration in 2010 after 13 years of being hidden under iron scaffolding and piles of sand. Workers recovered the church and polished and strengthened its walls, ceilings and towers.

With its Basilica-style architecture on top of the Roman fortress of Babylon, the Hanging Church will greet its visitors and worshipers in mid-October.

During the tour, El-Damati announced that the adjacent church of Abu Serga will also be inaugurated in December after its restoration. He also declared that the entirety of Mogamaa Al-Adian is to be closed to traffic the same way El-Moez street was to provide serenity and divinity for its visitors and worshipers.

El-Damati described the awful condition of the streets surrounding the monuments as “shocking” and pledged to immediately contact Cairo’s governor to remove all of the garbage that is scattered all over the streets and external walls of the monuments.

Mohamed El-Sheikha, head of the projects section, told Ahram Online that the Hanging Church is safe and that all restoration works were carried out professionally and according to the latest technology.

He explained that the official inauguration was put on hold due to the lack of security in the aftermath of the January 2011 uprising but that now it is safe for Egyptians to celebrate its inauguration.

He went on to say that the Hanging Church, like other monuments located in heavily populated areas, was suffering from environmental hazards including air pollution, a high subsoil water level, a high rate of humidity, leakage of water from the outdated and a decayed 100-year-old sewage system. Other hazards include decorations of the church’s wooden ceiling being stained with smoke and the adverse effects of the 1992 earthquake, which resulted in more cracks on the church’s walls and foundation.

In 1997 the then Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) launched a comprehensive restoration project to preserve Egypt’s Coptic shrine and restore such a distinguished church to its original splendor.

The restoration work was carried out in three phases to reduce water leakage and strengthen the church’s foundations and the Babylon fortress to protect them from potential future damage. The walls were reinforced, missing and decayed stones were replaced and masonry cleaned and desalinated.

The decorations and icons of the church were also subjected to fine restoration in collaboration with Russian experts; new lighting and ventilation systems have also been installed

@http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/42/108805/Heritage/Coptic/Cairos-Hanging-Church-set-to-open-in-October.aspx

Celebrating Nefertari's tomb discovery to take place in Luxor 15 October

Celebrating Nefertari's tomb discovery to take place in Luxor 15 October

Nefertari's tomb

The civil aviation ministry and the tourism authority, in collaboration with Italian Embassy in Egypt, will organize a ceremony in commemoration of the discovery of Nefertari's tomb in Luxor 110 years ago.

The celebration will take place between 15-25 October in the Valley of Queens, Luxor.

Several Italian archaeologists, trip organizers, media professionals representing Egypt and Italy will attend.Two photo exhibitions will be held atthe  Luxor Exhibition and the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Tourism Minister Hesham Zaazou said these events have an important impact on promoting cultural tourism in order to assure stability and security were restored in Egypt.

Nefertari's tomb is one of the most important discoveries in the Valley of the Queens. It was discovered in 1904.

Visitors were allowed access after some damages due to precipitation of salts at the hole leading to the tomb were fixed. Nefertari is one of the most famous Egyptian queens.The civil aviation ministry and the tourism authority, in collaboration with Italian Embassy in Egypt, will organize a ceremony in commemoration of the discovery of Nefertari's tomb in Luxor 110 years ago.

The celebration will take place between 15-25 October in the Valley of Queens, Luxor.

Several Italian archaeologists, trip organizers, media professionals representing Egypt and Italy will attend.Two photo exhibitions will be held atthe  Luxor Exhibition and the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Tourism Minister Hesham Zaazou said these events have an important impact on promoting cultural tourism in order to assure stability and security were restored in Egypt.

Nefertari's tomb is one of the most important discoveries in the Valley of the Queens. It was discovered in 1904.

Visitors were allowed access after some damages due to precipitation of salts at the hole leading to the tomb were fixed. Nefertari is one of the most famous Egyptian queens.
@http://www.egyptindependent.com//news/celebrating-nefertari-s-tomb-discovery-take-place-luxor-15-october

Outbound travel to Egypt from UAE picks up in 2014

Outbound travel to Egypt from UAE picks up in 2014

Industry experts say visitors feel a little more safe about the North African destination

Wahashtona campaign

Dubai: Outbound travel from the UAE to Egypt is rising slightly as holidaymakers feel a little more safe about visiting the destination that has been mired in conflict the last few years, according to industry experts.

Egypt’s tourism industry has waned after its revolution erupted on January 25, 2011, with anti-government protests having had scared visitors away.

In a bid to revive its ailing tourism industry, in May this year, Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism launched an ad campaign called “We miss you” to lure back visitors from the Gulf. The video features shopping malls, luxury hotels and dancers.

There has been a revival in visitor numbers in certain markets this year. The number of UAE tourists in Egypt grew by 35 per cent to 10,250 during the first five months of the year, according to statistics from the Egyptian Tourism Authority. However, overall visitor numbers decreased by 26.2 per cent.

“The situation had been really bad. In 2010, Egypt used to be one of the destinations that were high in demand for leisure customers and incentive groups. At one point, it was also a wedding destination,” said Kulwant Singh, managing director of Lama Tours, a tour operator.

Singh said that when protests erupted in the country, airline bookings by leisure and business travellers started to decline.

Political unrest

But by late 2012, booking numbers started to “pick up”, with the majority made by leisure travellers, he said. The growth, however, is still small.

Egypt accounted for 10-12 per cent of Lama Tours’ outbound business in the years before the political unrest, but now it makes up 1-2 per cent, he said.

Manu Mehrotra, general manager at Al Travel Agency, said that in general, airline bookings for Egypt have risen 5-10 per cent this year compared to 2013.

Similarly, Singh said the slight rise in airline bookings has continued this year.

After a slight recovery in 2012, the industry took another hit when several people were killed after the Egyptian army overthrew ousted President Mohammad Mursi in July 2013 following protests against him.

The country’s tourism revenue plummeted by 41 per cent to $5.9 billion (Dh21.6 billion) in 2013 over 2012.

According to a report by hospitality consultancy, HVS, hotel occupancy levels in Sharm Al Shaikh have dropped from 79 per cent in 2010 to 56 per cent in 2013, while average daily rate (ADR) fell by around 30 per cent during this period.

In Cairo, however, revenue per available room (RevPAR — an industry benchmark for performance) was 55 per cent lower in 2013 than it was over 2009-2010, according to HVS estimates.

Meanwhile, Europe has traditionally been Egypt’s largest source market, with a share of over 70 per cent. However, in May this year, European visitor numbers dropped to 590,000 from 684,000 during the same time a year ago.

Safer destination

Sharm Al Shaikh hotels saw occupancy rates drop 9 per cent to 59.7 per cent during June over the corresponding time a year ago, while in Cairo, occupancy edged down 1.3 per cent to 49.6 per cent, according to the June HotStats report. ADR of hotels in Sharm Al Shaikh fell 9 per cent to $41.

“June typically generates strong demand from leisure tourists and charters across the CIS region and Europe, however, the travel bans imposed by many European countries during the year diverted visitors to safer holiday destinations. Hoteliers were forced to lower the average rates for leisure visitors and tour groups by 18.1 per cent and 15 per cent, respectively, during the first half of the year,” stated Peter Goddard, managing director of TRI Hospitality Consulting, in the HotStats report.

In Cairo, though, ADR was up 5.5 per cent to $116.

In general, hotels in Egypt recorded a 4 per cent drop in their occupancy levels to 53 per cent in June over the same period in 2013, data by research firm STR Global showed. However, ADR was up 8 per cent to EGP492, and as a result, RevPAR rose 4 per cent to EGP261.

@http://gulfnews.com/business/tourism/outbound-travel-to-egypt-from-uae-picks-up-in-2014-1.1372696?utm_content=1.1372696&utm_medium=RSS&utm_source=Feeds&utm_campaign=Outbound_travel_to_Egypt_from_UAE_picks_up_in_2014&localLinksEnabled=false&utm_term=Business_RSS_feed

Egypt sees 2.3% boost in Saudi tourist arrivals

 Wahashtona campaign

Egypt sees 2.3% boost in Saudi tourist arrivals

The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and the Egyptian Tourism Authority have announced a comparative increase in the number tourists from Saudi Arabia in the month of June. About 34,426 tourists visited Egypt from the Kingdom in June 2013. This June saw 35,210 visitors from the Kingdom constituting a 2.3 percent increase. 

Much of the increase in tourist numbers from the Kingdom and from across the region has been attributed to the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and the Egyptian Tourism Authority’s Wahashtona campaign. The campaign was created to boost tourism to Egypt from Arab markets and includes competitive packages and special offers targeting tourists from across the GCC. 

The increased tourism rates to Egypt’s touristic destinations include the South Sinai and Red Sea governorates that are home to Egypt’s top two destinations — Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada. Combined, both destinations accounted for 76 percent of tourists visiting the country in June 2014, with visitors attracted to their temperate climate, golden beaches, diving and sea sports, as well as leisure and recreation activities. 

This June also recorded increased tourism to other destinations, including Cairo, Aswan and Alexandria. Cairo saw 11 percent increase in visitors, while Aswan and Alexandria recorded 18 percent and 24 percent increases in inbound tourism respectively. 

Tourism numbers are expected to continue to increase as a result of Wahashtona’s competitive offers — which start from $400 (including airline ticket and three-night residency) — and the nation’s continued stability and security.

@http://www.arabnews.com/news/economy/614921

Tourism programme to trace Holy Family’s steps through Egypt

Tourism programme to trace Holy Family’s steps through Egypt

Egypt and it's tourism industry had been going through a tremendous hardship - some say it's about to be considered destroyed. Tourism officials are scrambling to think out of the box to relaunch this important economic pillow of the country. To capitalize on Egypt's rich religious heritage, the Minister of Tourism Hisham Zaazou will launch a touristic program following the steps of the Holy Family through Egypt in October.

According to the Christian Bible, the Virgin Mary and Jesus stayed in Egypt for 42 months, visiting 20 different places.

According to the Egyptian tourism ministry the program will allow people to follow the Holy Family’s journey.

Egypt’s has a distinctive religious identity as a place of refuge, at different points in history, sheltering Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

The journey will take around a week.

The items, included across Egypt, include churches in Old Cairo, Maadi, Wadi El Natrun, and Al- Minya

Pope Tawadros II said tourism is “indispensible” for the national economy, pointing out that Jesus Christ was the most significant visitor to Egypt. For a small fee, the pope has agreed to open monasteries to tourist groups on the condition that the priests living there would be notified about the date and time of visits beforehand.

Zaazou said the Tourism Development Authority will hold training sessions for priests in churches and monasteries as part of the program to prepare them for tourists. The ministry will coordinate with the Egyptian General Tourist Guide Syndicate to update the information and references related to the Christian shrines that the Holy Family visited.

There have been biblical tours in Egypt, including programms that follow the Moses’s route through the country, before, but Tadros said they weren’t well promoted. Some people don’t even know the Coptic History in Egypt, she said.

This initiative is to promote religion for tourism. It's supposed to benefit the country economically and culturally.

@http://www.eturbonews.com/48940/tourism-programme-trace-holy-family-s-steps-through-egypt

شرم الشيخ و دهب - اسبوع في ساعه 2013

Thomson say it is safe to travel to resort in Sharm el Sheikh despite illness outbreak

Thomson say it is safe to travel to resort in Sharm el Sheikh despite illness outbreak

Sharm el Sheikh 

Some people have been taken ill at the Coral Sea Water World all-inclusive resort in Sharm el Sheikh, which led to the scare.

Thomson, First Choice and Thomson Cruises have issued the following statement: “First Choice is aware of a small number of cases of sickness at the Coral Sea Water World, Egypt with symptoms similar to a virus.

“Our overseas Holiday Advisors have been assisting any customers reporting sickness at the hotel, and they have been offering them appropriate support and advice.”

According to the company the number of people being taken ill has gone down, and a health and safety consultant is on site at the hotel making sure any illness is contained.

The company added: “We would like to reassure customers that we closely audit all the resorts to which we operate to ensure that health, hygiene and comfort levels are maintained.”
@http://www.bathchronicle.co.uk/Thomson-say-safe-travel-resort-Sharm-el-Sheikh/story-22075685-detail/story.html

Enrique Iglesias to perform in Egypt, part of his 'Sex and Love' tour

Enrique Iglesias to perform in Egypt, part of his 'Sex and Love' tour

On Saturday, 9 August, international pop superstar Enrique Iglesias will perform in Golf Porto Marina in Egypt as part of his 'Sex and Love' tour; Golf Porto posts promo

Enrique Iglesias

When Enrique Iglesias announced on Twitter his upcoming concert in Egypt, scheduled on 9 August, the news spread like wildfire.

"Egypt! Coming to Golf Porto Marina in El Alamein August 9th! Tickets on sale NOW! Don’t miss it!," the star tweeted. A few days later Ticketsmarche, Egypt's online ticketing platform, opened ticket sales.

Ticketsmarche announced four categories of pricing, ranging from LE300 ($85) to LE1,000 ($143).

Meanwhile, fans started expressing their excitement about their idol's arrival to Egypt, with Iglesias replying to a few of them. When asked by @biexbersmile if he is excited to come to Egypt, Iglesias tweeted in reply: "Very much! will I see you there?"

Son of well-known singer Julio Iglesias, Enrique has over 7.6 million followers on Twitter and not only uses the platform to announce his concerts but also communicates with many of his fans. The star is also known for organising scheduled Twitter chats with his followers.

Hosted by Amer Malls, Golf Porto Marina, Iglesias's concert in Egypt part of his international 'Sex and Love' tour, from the title of his tenth and most recent studio album, released in March 2014. The concert will feature DJ David Vendetta as the opening act.

A few seconds-long promo, in which Iglesias announces his concert on 9 August in Egypt, has been released on Golf Porto Marina's Facebook page.

It is the star's second visit to Egypt. In 2004, he performed in Media Production City in 6th of October City to a crowd of 25,000 fans. At the time, it was considered Iglesias's biggest international tour, following release of his fourth Spanish-languge studio album Quizás (Perhaps).

Programme:

Saturday, 9 August

Golf Porto Marina, Km 110 Alexandria / Mars Matrouh Road Al-Alamein, North Coast

Doors open at 6pm

David Vendetta performs at 9pm

Enrique Iglesias performs at 10pm

Tickets can be purchased at Ticketsmarche. For reservations, call Mobinil at 8000.

Ticketsmarche enumerates regulations: "Kids less than two years are not allowed; over two years require a full ticket. No cameras allowed, no pets, no alcohol and no fireworks. No refunds or exchange of tickets after purchase.

Bibliotheca Alexandrina Summer Festival

Bibliotheca Alexandrina Summer Festival

Organised by the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Art Centre, this 12th edition of the festival brings a large line-up of renowned Egyptian musicians and bands to the Mediterranean city from 6 August-2 September

Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Wednesday 6 August and Thursday 7 August, 8pm, Great Hall
Omar Khairat and Bibliotheca Alexandrina Chamber Orchestra

Saturday 9 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Black Theama band

Sunday 10 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Bibliotheca Alexandrina Chamber Orchestra performs tangos and film music

Monday 11 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Sout El Night: concert of underground musicians

Tuesday 12 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Les Companions band

Saturday 16 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Dina El-Wededi

Sunday 17 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Cairokee band

Monday 18 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Shaware3na band

Tuesday 19 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Al-Tazawwoq troupe

Wednesday 20 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Massar Egbari band

Thursday 21 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Egyptian Project band

Saturday 23 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Underground Music Night: Sout Fel Zahma, Nour Ashour, Wasla band, Sama El Hadi.

Sunday 24 August, 6pm, Auditorium (free entry)
Screening of three films by three women directors

Sunday 24 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Mazhar and Soul Masters band

Monday 25 August, 6pm, Western Lectures Hall
Cinema lecture “Writing with Light”

Monday 25 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre (free entry)
Ganoub El-Wadi troupe

Tuesday 26 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Karakeeb band

Wednesday 27 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
El Masrieen band

Thursday, 28 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Mohamed Mohsen

Saturday, 30 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Bibliotheca Alexandrina Chamber Orchestra performs tangos and film music

Sunday, 31 August, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Cultural Palace Choir

Monday, 1 September, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
High Dam band and Meshwar band

Tuesday, 2 September, 8.30pm, Open Air Theatre
Festival closing with Les Petits Chats singers

Note on ticket prices:
Prices range between LE10 and LE50 depending on the event, except for Omar Khairat's concert with tickets priced between LE75 and LE200.