“Egypt Alive” is the central theme and motto of the Egyptian Tourism Promotion Board (ETPB) in 2022 and the next three years, CEO of ETPB Amr Al-Kady told Daily News Egypt in an interview.
“Our target from this theme is to send a message to the whole world that Egypt is a vibrant country. Cairo and all the governorates do not sleep; they are full of events and activities to attract the tourist’s attention and enjoy a new experience of integrating into Egyptian society,” he said.
Al-Kady said that tourists in the morning could enjoy relaxing on the seashore and the rising sun or watching antiquities, and then — in the evening —could enjoy various nightlife events and activities.
He explained that Egypt Alive means movement or flow, so it was translated into a full agenda of organising Egyptian events and festivals everywhere, locally and internationally.
“This flow of movement is also translated into global outreach, which is opening and developing tourism relations with all markets.”
Could we talk in-depth about the new promotion strategy?
Our new promotional strategy is based on promoting Egypt as a tourist destination through creative ideas. We are working to highlight the diversity of the tourism product. This strategy was put in place after an in-depth study by a British-Canadian company.
This company specialises in marketing and has experience in several countries. The company did an in-depth study on tourists from 12 different countries — the main exporters of tourists to the Egyptian market, including Germany, England, France, Italy, Spain, Russia, Ukraine, the United States, Saudi Arabia, and Kazakhstan.
These tourists have been asked about their preferences by telling them to choose between two countries. The company also monitored, for seven months, everything that was written or published about Egypt in the media or on social networks, scanning millions of posts to find out what these people’s preferences are.
The goal of this study was to know the changes that occurred after the coronavirus; to see the opinions of people, their ideas, and the image they have of Egypt.
The world knows that Egypt is a tourist destination that has many distinct elements, from beautiful beaches and grand monuments. Still, at the same time, we want them to delve deeper into our society, because the spirit of Egypt’s population is characterised by great liveliness and vibrancy. So, from here, we considered the idea of Egypt Alive.
What are the promotional plans of the ETPB in 2022?
We will continue our digital ‘Sunny Christmas’ campaign, which was launched in late 2021 to promote the country’s top travel destinations for winter 2022 but under the new title of ‘Sunny January.’
The campaign’s launch coincided with Christmas and New Year’s Eve celebrations in Western countries.
This e-campaign targets tourists from seven countries, including Russia, Ukraine, Italy, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The campaign showcases Egyptian tourist destinations’ archaeological and natural elements, including warm weather, scenery, ancient relics, and diverse tourist activities.
The campaign’s purpose is to promote Egyptian tourism destinations and send a message that Egypt has warm weather to enjoy Christmas and winter in general on its beaches. Also, the campaign aimed to promote domestic tourism and encourage Egyptians to spend the holidays, New Year’s Eve, and Christmas at Egyptian tourist destinations.
The success of the campaign far exceeded our expectations, so it will continue under the title ‘Sunny January.’
We also have another campaign to promote Egypt’s tourist destinations to Arab markets in Ramadan and Eid and will have one for the summer as well.
When will you start the promotional campaign for the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM)?
The GEM campaign’s launch date is subject to determining the museum’s opening date, so we are ready once the date is set.
I can’t give you details now about the campaign, but I can say that Egypt will dazzle the world as always.
We have been planning tremendous and impressive events and great promotional campaigns during the past two years. We won two international prizes, including the Best Digital Promotional Campaign Award in Russia and the UNWTO Video Award for Exceptional Stories of Sustainable Tourism.
So, Egypt has proven that it can make impressive events and campaigns. I think the campaign and the event of the inauguration of the GEM will be on the same level or hopefully higher.
Furthermore, Egypt won the first award as the best promotional campaign launched on social media in Russia, according to the global Ad colony platform, one of the leading platforms in evaluating electronic advertising campaigns.
The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities had launched this campaign in Russia to promote Egyptian tourist destinations. Egypt was the only country to receive the award that year
In December, the UNWTO announced that Egypt won the award for best video for Exceptional Stories of Sustainable Tourism. It was launched ahead of the 24th UNWTO General Assembly that was held in Madrid. The competition was designed to recognise the best visual storytellers from every global region.
The best examples of destinations harnessing the power of tourism for sustainable development were celebrated in the 2021 UNWTO Tourism Video Competition. The Ministry released this video to showcase Egypt’s tourism potential and how the tourism sector is advancing the 2030 agenda for sustainable development.
A lot of inaugurations, including the Mohamed Ali Palace and the Capitals Museum, and events topped by Egypt’s hosting for the COP27, are scheduled to occur in 2022. How will the ETPB exploit these events in promoting tourism in Egypt?
Yes, our calendar in 2022 is full of international and domestic entertainment and corporate events along with festivals that will take place in Egypt. All the openings will have their own celebrations.
Concerning the promotion for these events, we have participated in many conferences and exhibitions where we promoted our events, and we will do so again in 15 exhibitions until June.
In every exhibition, our promotional message to our international partners — whether to travel agencies, airlines, or international tourism organisations — aims to remind the world of Egypt’s distinctive tourist destinations and products, in addition to promoting and introducing our coming events, including the COP27, GEM, etc.
We also hold press conferences and media interviews on the side-lines of our participation in these exhibitions to talk about our coming events and their importance.
Additionally, we also conduct mini campaigns for every event on social media. So, we promote every event for consumers and for agencies in Egypt and abroad.
What are your expectations for the year in terms of tourist turnout and revenues?
Despite the coronavirus pandemic, in 2021, tourist numbers in Egypt gradually rose and the demand for the country’s tourist destinations increased, indicating that tourists were confident in Egypt as a destination and of the hygiene safety regulations implemented here.
Also, 2021 witnessed a growing increase in visiting archaeological sites in Luxor, Aswan, Cairo, and Giza, whether from foreigners or from Egyptians themselves.
So, by comparing the international and domestic tourism movement in Egypt in 2021 with the international tourism movement globally and the repercussions of the pandemic, we can deduce that the number of tourists and the revenues in 2021 were very satisfactory.
So, as vaccination rates rise worldwide and countries begin to open their borders for travelling, we expect 2022 to be a very promising year for tourism in terms of both the numbers and the revenues.
What are your expectations for the hot spots in Egypt in 2022?
The Red Sea used to be the main destination for Egypt in terms of the number of tourists, but we expect that in 2022, Luxor and Giza will have a great share also due to the GEM’s inauguration that is eagerly awaited from the whole world.
What about the touristic map or the touristic base expected in 2022? Especially after the return of Russian tourism, and also what are our target countries?
In 2022, we are targeting a global outreach. Our main strategy is to increase and intensify our promotional efforts in the main tourist export markets in order to maintain and increase their numbers in Egypt, but also to focus on attracting new markets, including the US and Canada as well as the Far East, specifically Japan, South Korea, and China.
We are keen to develop tourism relations with almost all countries, even in Africa. We are marketing ourselves in almost all countries of the world.
It is worth noting that the travel ban to Sharm El-Sheikh that was imposed by Russia and the UK was an opportunity to attract new nationalities to come and visit Egypt. This experience taught us to continue opening and attracting new markets to come and visit Egypt, even with the return of Russian and UK tourists to Egypt and the return of European countries in general. We will continue to open new markets and not be dependent on one nationality.
How did the touristic events, including the Pharaohs’ Golden Parade and the Luxor Sphinx Avenue reopening positively impact the tourism sector?
These events had a very positive impact on tourism in Egypt, as they established two essential things: That Egypt is a safe country, and the state has a great ability to organise major events. Also, the two events witnessed high praise from the international community.
I want to mention that all the events have had a significant impact, but it did not appear immediately, and it took three or four months before we could see their effect on the international community.
Foreigners plan their trips in the long term; So, the impact of any event appears after three or four months. To explain further, if a foreigner watched the Pharaohs’ Golden Parade in April, they usually visited Egypt around August and September.
So, I think the impact of the Sphinx Avenue event in Luxor will become apparent in March, but there was a direct impact on Luxor that we witnessed after only two days from the event, with a huge number of tourists that were vacationing in Hurghada coming to Luxor for a one-day trip. This has led to a significant increase in visits to the museum and archaeological sites of the governorate.
Also, since then, we have received many requests to organise different events in Egypt’s archaeological locales and museums.
To give you an example, the Lebanese fashion designer Ellie Saab organised his Fashion show in Abdeen Place in December. The Italian designer Stefano Ricci — one of the most expensive brands in Europe — will also be holding a fashion show to celebrate the 50th anniversary of establishing his company in front of the Temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor in February. So, there is now international demand for Egypt to organise major events in these venues.
I think that the image of Egypt abroad is excellent; so, it is time to reap the fruits of this image.
Promoting takes time, but the most important thing is to keep organising events and campaigns every now and then to keep the image and the name of Egypt on the top of the global community’s mind.
Quotes:-
GEM promotional campaign’s launch date is subject to determining the museum’s opening date, so we are ready once the date is set.
In 2022, we are targeting a global outreach. Our main strategy is to increase and intensify our promotional efforts in the main tourist export markets in order to maintain and increase their numbers in Egypt, but also to focus on attracting new markets.
Mega events that were organized in 2021 established two essential things: That Egypt is a safe country, and the state has a great ability to organise major events.
We have participated in many conferences and exhibitions where we promoted our events, and we will do so again in 15 exhibitions until June.
