Tourism in Egypt was down 19 percent in the last three weeks of July compared to the same period last year, said Tourism Minister Mounir Fakhri Abdel Nour, adding that the drop is less than expected.
This is a positive indicator that tourism has started to recover and return to pre-revolution rates, Abdel Nour said, noting that tourism declined by 80, 60, 42, 35, and 28.7 percent in February, March, April, May, and June respectively.
Regarding the impact former President Hosni Mubarak's exit from the Sharm el-Sheikh will have on tourism in the Red Sea resort city, Abdel Nour said it would be a positive factor, as protests had a negative influence on tourism there.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
