Egyptian Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy held a series ofmeetings on the sidelines of the World Travel and Tourism Council’s (WTTC) 26th Global Summit in Valletta, Malta, to discuss expanding tourism cooperation, boosting arrivals to Egypt, and attracting more cruise and yacht tourism.
Fathy met with Saudi Deputy Minister of Tourism Abdul Mohsen Al Mazid to discuss strengthening tourism ties and increasing travel between the two countries. Both sides highlighted the close relations between Egypt and Saudi Arabia and reviewed developments in their respective tourism sectors.
The Egyptian minister outlined trends in tourist arrivals to Egypt and the ministry’s plans to expand the use of modern technology and artificial intelligence (AI) in promoting the country as a tourism destination.
Discussions also covered the growing appeal of Egypt’s North Coast among Saudi tourists and opportunities to develop yacht tourism in the Red Sea.
On the industry front, Fathy met with Neal Jones, president of Europe, Middle East and Africa at Marriott International, and Chris Nassetta, president and CEO of Hilton, to discuss the groups’ expansion plans in Egypt in line with the country’s targets for increasing tourist arrivals.
The meetings also explored cooperation in training and skills development for Egyptian tourism and hospitality workers, opportunities for Egyptian talent to gain international experience at the groups’ hotels worldwide, and ways to leverage their global networks to promote Egypt and attract new segments of visitors.
Jones outlined Marriott’s expansion plans in Egypt, while Nassetta reaffirmed the importance of the Egyptian market to Hilton. He highlighted the group’s expansion across several Egyptian destinations, including the North Coast, as well as its activities in Nile cruises and dahabiya sailing trips.
Fathy also met with representatives of a Saudi company specialising in cruise tourism to discuss increasing the number of its cruises calling at Egyptian ports and tourist destinations as part of its Mediterranean itineraries, particularly along the North Coast and in El Alamein.
The minister welcomed expanded cooperation in the sector. Both sides agreed to coordinate with the Egyptian Tourism Federation to explore ways to activate the partnership and increase tourist arrivals through cruise tourism.
During his visit, Fathy also gave several media interviews to Maltese outlets to outline the ministry’s vision and strategy and highlight the latest developments in Egypt’s tourism sector.
The meetings were attended by Ahmed Youssef, CEO of the Egyptian Tourism Authority; Rana Gohar, adviser to the tourism minister for communications and foreign relations and supervisor of the ministry’s international relations and agreements department; Ahmed Nabil, assistant minister for aviation and follow-up; and Suzanne Mostafa, head of the tourism marketing central administration at the Egyptian Tourism Promotion Authority.
