Prominent sources in the Ministry of Tourism said that security delegations from the UK, Russia, and Germany will finalise the renewed security procedures at Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada airports by mid-December to restore trips from the UK to South Sinai before the end of the month.
According to the official, who preferred to remain anonymous, the ministries of Tourism, Interior, and Civil Aviation, and Sovereign Authorities are coordinating with foreign security delegations on securing airports in touristic areas.
The official said the Ministry of Tourism is coordinating with tourism companies to resume trips to Egypt after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to suspend commercial trips to Egypt.
“A meeting was held between Minister of Tourism Hisham Zaazou and British ambassador to Cairo John Casson on a joint plan to restore UK trips to Sharm El-Sheikh,” the source said.
According to the official, the security operations are not limited to revising entry and exit procedures in the airports but include all areas around the resorts. They will intensify security presence and use advanced technologies among the security means.
A statement by the Ministry of Tourism said the UK and Egypt mandated Zaazou and Casson to agree on a joint plan to resume trips to Sharm El-Sheikh from the UK very soon.
The joint statement said they are putting the final touches on the plan to achieve that their goals, which is an important, effective, and a welcomed step by both governments. The statement said the steps that were agreed upon will begin immediately.
The UK suspended tourism packages to Sharm El-Sheikh in November after a Russian airplane crashed in Sinai on 31 October. Russia also suspended its trips to Egypt for the same reason.
Russian tourism represented 35% of total tourism coming to Egypt, according to the official, while British tourism represents about 10%. Approximately o 3.1 million Russian tourists and a million British tourists visited Egypt out of the 9.9 million total tourists who visited Egypt in 2014.
“Occupancy rates in Sharm El-Sheikh are still low, ranging between 10% and 40%, which shows the significant disparity in occupancy rates. There are some hotels in Nuweiba and Taba with occupancy rates no more than 3%,” the official source said.
Head of the Tourism Investors Association in Marsa Allam Adel Radi said that occupancy rates in the area are normal and that travel movements are stable, unlike in Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheikh. Occupancy rates range between 60% and 65% and h expects the numbers to increase in the next period with during the Christmas holidays.
