EGYPT WANTS TOURISTS TO COME BACK

The Egyptian Tourism Authority is insisting that tourists can safely visit Egypt, with a statement released by the tourism authority this week saying “most of the tourist sites and especially the Red Sea resorts are entirely safe and sound for visitors.” Political unrest has led to steep declines in visitors, with the government reporting that it has lost $6.5 billion in tourism revenues in the past two years. Egyptian Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou is working to convince tourists to return, saying security and safety is getting better “by the day, by the hour.” Zaazou is calling on governments to lift travel advisories for Egypt, adding many European countries — including Germany, France and Russia — have already done so for popular Red Sea resorts, the South Sinai and the Gulf of Aqaba. Canada doesn\’t have an advisory against Red Sea travel. “Some foreign safety experts visited Egypt recently for the purpose of inspecting the security measures applied in the country, especially in airports and major tourist destinations such as Luxor, Aswan, Sharm El Sheikh, Hurghada, and Marsa Allam. The preliminary reports following the inspections indicate the final ones will be very positive,” the tourism authority says. (http://www.egypt.travel)