How safe is a holiday to Egypt during the current violent protests and civil unrest?

IT’S been a week since President Mohammed Morsi was ousted In Egypt and today an arrest order has been issued for the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohammed Badie

The violent protests, which saw more than 50 people killed on Monday, has led tour operators to cancel day trips to Cairo and Luxor for tourists currently on holiday in the country. A sensible decision, following Foreign Office advice, urging Britons against “non essential” travel to some areas of the country.

In line with this, Explore and Exodus, who both specialise in adventure travel involving visits to ancient pyramids and temples have temporarily suspended holidays to the region for the next three months. Both are currently contacting customers and offering alternative holidays.

So, where does that leave holiday-makers due to fly out this summer?

The good news for anyone heading to a Red Sea Resort destination is that this region appears to be unaffected.

The latest Foreign Office advice continues to be, “In view of the continued unrest and ongoing evolving political situation in Egypt, the FCO recommends against all but essential travel to Egypt except for resorts on the Red Sea in South Sinai and those resorts on the Egyptian mainland in Red Sea governorate.”
These exemptions include, “Red Sea resorts in the entire region of Sharm el Sheikh, Taba, Nuweiba and Dahab”. – all a good eight hours drive from any of the areas which the Foreign Office has advised against visiting.

A spokesperson for Thomas Cook UK & Ireland said: "We continue to monitor the situation in Egypt and are working in close contact with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Our experienced teams on the ground assure us that no tourist areas at the Red Sea have been affected.”

Flights to Sharm el Sheikhk are continuing as normal, they say and the Foreign Office has precautions for any travellers to Egypt include.

1.    Checking that you are well covered on your travel Insurance.
2.    The company you plan to travel with ABTA or Atol registered
3.    Make sure you keep up to date with news and check the Foreign
Office website for any updates https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

Currently, advice on their website urges Britons against travelling to the North Sinai district and say that any airport passengers travelling to destinations involving a transit stop in Cairo should remain inside the airport.

“The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise against all travel to the Governorate of North Sinai due to the significant increase in criminal activity and recent terrorist attacks on police and security forces that have resulted in deaths.”

Egypt targets 13 million tourists in 2013

Minister of Tourism Hisham Zaazou said his ministry was working to return tourism to pre-revolution levels

Minister of Tourism Hisham Zaazou said his ministry was working to return tourism to pre-revolution levels,according to state-owned Al-Ahram.

Zaazou stated that if Egypt managed to remain internally stable for the rest of the year, he hoped for the country to receive 13 million tourists by the end of 2013, compared to the 14.8 million tourists that came in 2010.

He maintained that if planned demonstrations against President Mohamed Morsi proceeded peacefully on 30 June, it could have a positive impact on tourism.

The minister had previously pushed for an advertising campaign promoting tourism to Egypt, but said budget considerations led to the campaign’s suspension. Zaazou also said the ministry was preparing for November, in which it would welcome tourists who would trace the steps of the Christian Holy Family in Egypt, anticipating visitors from Europe, the United States and domestic tourists.

The ministry, according to Zaazou, was also eyeing more business from India and China, huge markets with high potential.  Next month will bring the introduction of a new route from New Delhi to Egypt, which will be the fifth weekly flight between the two countries. Zaazou added that he would host the Federation of Indian Tourism in September.

Zaazou said he had appointed an adviser to exclusively deal with the Chinese market.

The minister added that he anticipated that Egypt would see a healthy number of tourists arriving in the summer, especially after Ramadan, assuming the season is not marred by political instability.

The Sixteenth Session of Ismailia International Film Festival for Documentary and short Films

The Ismailia International Film Festival for Documentaries and Shorts has announced there will be more than 52 films from 30 countries, including 10 world premieres, participating in the festival.
The festival will also include a co-production platform for documentary films that will entail 10 films in production and two films in post-production. The filmmakers are invited to the festival to be part of a peer review workshop, with access to experts and funding that could help the filmakers achieve their projects. A prize of $20,000 will also be up for grabs.

"In a first time collaboration with Screen Institute Beirut, the festival is also organising an editing workshop for three projects in the post-production phase. Three professional tutors from Denmark, Syria and Egypt will conduct the workshop sessions. We started working on this initiative four months ago. The aim is to enhance the film industry," Mohamed Hefzy, festival director and founder of Film Clinic, said at the festival's press conference.

The festival will debut 15 films from the National Cinema Centre's archive, featuring the Suez Canal and the role played by the province's residents from 1954 until 1974, through times of war.

The festival administration has also assigned 100 volunteers from Ismailia and nearby cities and areas in order to enhance collaboration amongst the festival's community.

Jury members include internationally acclaimed Egyptian documentary filmmaker Tahani Rached, and Safinez Bousbia, director of the critically acclaimed El-Gusto.

The jury for the short films and animation section will be presided over by Michelle Driguez and includes Chadi Zinnedine and Egyptian filmmaker Sherif El-Bindary.

Viola Shafik (Germany/Egypt) will act as the jury president for the co-production platform with Hania Mroueh and Malek Khoury, head of the film programme at the American University in Cairo, acting as jury members.

The Ismailia International Film Festival for Documentaries and Shorts first launched in 1991, organised by the Egyptian Film Centre. The coastal city of Ismailia, which was established in 1863 with the construction of the Suez Canal by Khedive Ismail, has hosted 15 editions of the festival.

The Ismailia festival awards the best two films in the four main competitions — long documentary films, short documentary films, short feature films, and animation films.

http://www.egypt.travel