The Cultural Tourism Marketing Committee in Luxor received the first Russian trip coming from Hurghada through one-day trips to visit tourist and archaeological destinations in Karnak, Luxor and the West Bank temples.
The head of the Cultural Tourism Marketing Committee in Luxor Mohamed Othman said the committee received 250 Russian tourists, who were received with gifts like scarabs, papyrus and roses, to celebrate their return an absence of six years.
The return of Russian flights pleased workers in the tourism sector, he said, as Russia represents a major force in tourism decision-making for a large number of countries globally, especially with the start of the new tourist season.
He anticipates that a large number of countries that suspended tourism to Egyptian tourist cities will return soon.
According to Othman, Luxor benefits by about 80 percent of the volume of Russian tourism that visits the cities of the Red Sea.
This increases purchasing power and helps the recovery of restaurants, hotels and bazaars, while bringing real recovery for workers in the tourism sector.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
