Egypt is relying on this summer’s opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) and a surge in hotel investments to maintain its record-breaking tourism growth, Egyptian Tourism Authority CEO Amr El Kady told TTN recently.
International tourism arrivals crossed 15.7 million in calendar 2024, a near-6 per cent increase on the previous year and well over pre-Covid peak of 14.9 million. Despite geopolitical challenges, the country expects to see visitor arrivals grow by 10 to 12 per cent this year. “For 2025, conservatively we can look at 10 to 12 per cent growth,” he said in an interview at the ETA’s sprawling stand at ITB Berlin. That could take total numbers to 17 million, he said: “Which is gold.” The government’s aim is to attract some 30 million tourists annually by 2028. GEM GEM is expected to be Egyptian tourism’s big draw over the short term. Two kilometres north of the Giza pyramids and twice the size of the Louvre, it is the world’s largest archaeological museum complex dedicated to a single civilisation. Parts of the 500,000-sq-m complex are already open to visitors, but access to the Khufu's Boats Museum and to the Tutankhamun galleries – described as recreating the experience of walking through the boy Pharaoh’s tomb – is restricted until the official opening on July 3. “The entire collection of King Tut is coming together for the first time in 100 years since it was discovered,” El Kady said, adding that interest in the complex is at an all-time high. “This is the first question we receive everywhere we go. When is the opening?” GEM will add to Cairo’s appeal and encourage longer stays, El Kady said. Currently, visitors typically see the Egyptian capital as their entry point into the country, only staying a night or two to visit the pyramids. Accordingly, the ETA will ramp up its support for the tourism trade with familiarization (fam) trips, trade partnerships and promotional efforts. Agents will be hosted over short itineraries created around the museum in the second half of the year and into 2026, he said, “so the trade knows exactly what to offer to their customers”. He pointed to the importance of highlighting Egypt’s wide breadth of travel experiences, both from a geographical and cultural standpoint. He believes Egypt has something for every visitor. “Our communication this year is Egypt unmatched diversity,” he said. “We have a great diversity of culture, because Egypt was always a major crossroads in history.” Travellers from the GCC know Egypt better than many locals, he quipped. “They speak the language, they know the tradition, they know the food, they've seen the movies, they listen to the music. We are one nation.” For expat visitors, he said the region’s travel trade could highlight Egypt’s proximity, safety and value for money in addition to its cultural aspects. “If you compare five-star hotel prices in Egypt with Dubai or Abu Dhabi, we win all the way.” HOTEL INVESTMENT For Egypt to meet its 30-million inbound ambition, it will require increasing accommodation supply, including about 250,000 new hotel rooms. Egypt has 109 hotel projects under development, the most in Africa. That’s a pipeline of 26,241 rooms, according to the W Hospitality Group and the African Hotel Investment Forum. More than two-thirds (71 per cent) are being developed by the Big 5: Accor, Hilton, IHG, Marriott International and Radisson Hotel Group. Among the largest new projects is Ras El-Hekma, 200km west of Alexandria, where Egyptian authorities want to convert a seaside village into a mixed-use resort city. Abu Dhabi-based investment company ADQ last year acquired development rights for the project for $24 billion last year. And last month, the Abu Dhabi Tourism Investment Company (ADTIC), a subsidiary of the UAE-based, state-owned Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), broke ground on a new $120-million Sofitel hotel adjacent to the Giza pyramids. Meanwhile, as a new capital city gets underway, Egypt is also repurposing heritage sites into tourism assets. "The government has moved out of Cairo and we left behind beautiful historical buildings, palaces, those are to be transformed into heritage hotels in the heart of the city.” More details on these projects have not been announced. In January, the government announced plans to regulate short-term rentals more tightly. While not currently under the Tourism and Antiquities Ministry, El Kady said the new law would tackle safety and hygiene issues. The ministry does not currently regulate short-term rentals but nevertheless aims to introduce a new accreditation system to help tourists differentiate between approved and non-approved listings. INFRASTRUCTURE ENHANCEMENT El Kady acknowledged that tourism infrastructure needs to keep pace. “We like to grow step by step, in line with the growth rate of hotel rooms and air connectivity… We don't want to finally find ourselves receiving 10s of millions of people who we cannot accommodate.” Issues around road connectivity are being addressed, he said. The capital’s Metro network is also being expanded, with the addition of a fourth line spanning 39 stations over approximately 42 kilometres. Another $260 million is being spent on transforming the Abu Qir Alexandria railway line into an electric metro.