Egypt expects tourism to bounce back after sharp decline
Minister says with last year’s unrest over, people are set to return to pyramids and beaches
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The Giza pyramids near Cairo. (Melanie Fidler/Flash90)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Egypt’s tourism minister said on Monday he expects visitor numbers to bounce back to pre-uprising levels this year after travelers stayed away amid Arab Spring unrest.
Tourism Minister Mounir Abdel-Nour spoke at a hotel conference in Dubai that Egypt is aiming to attract 14.5 million tourists this year.
That would put it close to the 14.7 million tourist level the North African country drew in 2010.
Abdel-Nour said visitor numbers plunged by a third last year as travelers made nervous by violent street protests avoided the pyramids, beaches and other sites for which Egypt is known.
Egypt depends heavily on tourism to create jobs and bring in foreign currency.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.
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