Luxor Still Tourists' Favorite in London Travel Market

Luxor Governor Tarek Saad el-Din stressed that Luxor is still a favorite destination as many representatives of travel agencies at the International Travel Market here refused to cancel their December reservations.

Speaking to MENA, Saad el-Din said the Upper Egyptian governorate is free of any protests and there is no reason why some countries continue to impose a travel ban that has badly harmed the workers in the tourism sector.

He said lifting the UK travel ban to Egypt will certainly play a key role in recovering the Egyptian tourism sector, especially in Luxor, stressing that many British travel operators are exercising pressure on the government to lift the ban.

As part of efforts to address fears on security in Luxor, the governor said 28-million-pound security surveillance cameras will be installed in all tourist areas in the governorate to convey a true picture of the security situation.

Also, he unveiled plans to launch a satellite channel covering Luxor tourism. The governor called for re-operating the train service to Luxor and linking airports of Sharm el-Sheikh, Hurghada and Marsa Alam with that of Luxor to help recover tourism.

Egyptian Tourism Minister Sounds Optimistic About Egypt Tourism

Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou said he is optimistic that tourist rates in Egypt will return to normal.

"Many nations have dropped their travel warnings against traveling to Egypt," he said in a press conference held on the sideline of his participation in the World Travel Market 2013, which is held in London on Nov. 4-7.

"That will help in restoring the normal rates of tourism after many nations have issued their travel warnings in the wake of the June 30 revolution," he said.

He acknowledged the country has suffered from setbacks in tourism.

The tourist rates decreased by 35 percent in July compared to the same month last year, the minister said, adding the number of tourists continued to decrease till reaching 90 percent in September.

The minister criticized the bleak and negative image that is being portrayed by some media outlets regarding the latest developments in Egypt.

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Zaazou: Germans keen to boost tourism in Egypt

In statements on the sidelines of a press conference in Hurghada with representatives of tourism companies and a German media delegation Minister of Tourism Hisham Zaazou hailed the efforts made by the German government to lift the travel ban to Egypt, adding that the Germans are keen to boost tourism in Egypt.

He extended thanks to the German Ambassador in Cairo and German tourism companies operating in Egypt, which called on their countries to lift the travel ban to Egypt.

Zaazou pointed out that Egypt is currently seeking to improve its relations with its German partners, especially that the Germans flocked to the Red Sea after it turned into a tourism destination.