Egypt Tourism Authority opens first GCC office

With tourism to Egypt rising 9% in H1 2015, the Egyptian Tourism Authority has officially opened its new office in Abu Dhabi, its first office in the region.

To encourage the continued rise of tourism, the ETA has marketed heavily across Arab markets, particularly within the Gulf region, with their new campaign, Masr Qariba (meaning “Egypt is close”).

The office was inaugurated during a celebration event attended by Egyptian Ambassador to the UAE, Ehab Hamouda; Sami Mahmoud, Chairman of ETA and Ahmed Ali, Head of ETA’s Abu Dhabi office, who were joined by a number of prominent public figures, diplomatic representatives and members of the media.

Mr. Sami Mahmoud, Chairman of the Egyptian Tourism Authority, said: “The opening of our new Abu Dhabi office is an important milestone for ETA, which reflects the strong ties we have with our neighbors in the Arab world.

“The UAE has always been a strong supporter of Egypt and is one of the country’s key tourism markets. The launch is a key element of the strategic plan developed by the Ministry of Tourism and ETA to attract 20 million visitors to Egypt by 2020, and drive tourism revenues to reach USD 26 billion.”

During the coming months, the Ministry is set to focus on Nile tourism and also promote cultural tourism by providing programs which combine both beach and cultural destinations.

Ahmed Ali, Head of the ETA office in Abu Dhabi, said: “We are striving to explore new horizons in our tourism partnerships with Arab nations, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, the Sultanate of Oman and Lebanon in particular.”