Sherif Fathy, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, met on the sidelines of his participation in World Travel Market London (WTM 2025) in the British capital with the CEO of global tourism destinations group TUI and the Chief Operating Officer of Coral Travel Group, two of the world's largest tour operators.
During these meetings, the CEO of TUI Group and the COO of Coral Travel Group reviewed the growth rates achieved by the two groups in inbound tourist traffic to Egypt from the various markets in which they operate.
The CEO of TUI Group explained that inbound tourist traffic to Egypt has grown by 40% from the beginning of January to date. He also announced the launch of a new floating hotel between the cities of Luxor and Aswan as part of the group's plans to develop the Nile tourism product.
He added that the group is currently working to expand the distribution of tourist traffic within Egypt to include new destinations such as Marsa Alam, Sharm El-Sheikh and Marsa Matrouh, expecting further growth in the coming period in light of the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum, a historic event that strengthens Egypt's position on the global tourism map. He congratulated the Egyptian government and the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities on this major achievement.
For his part, the COO of Coral Travel Group pointed to growing demand for Egypt as a destination from the various markets in which the group operates, revealing that it has carried more than 850,000 tourists to Egypt over the past period, and noting that, as of May 2026, three weekly flights will be operated from the Polish market to New Alamein City.
He also reviewed the group's future plans to expand in the Egyptian market by boosting operations to Marsa Alam and the North Coast, as well as opening a new company branch in Egypt in the coming phase to support its activity and expand its business in the country.
During the meeting, the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities praised the positive results achieved, stressing the Egyptian state's commitment to supporting and encouraging tourism investment and developing infrastructure in promising areas, particularly the Berenice area south of Marsa Alam, which is currently undergoing comprehensive development work to prepare it as a new tourist destination, through paving new roads linking it to a number of tourist cities on the Red Sea such as Marsa Alam, El Quseir, Safaga and Hurghada, in addition to linking its airport with Marsa Alam Airport.
The minister also reviewed efforts to strengthen the Nile tourism product, noting the ongoing expansion in this field through facilitating licensing procedures, building new marinas and developing existing ones, with a number of floating hotels recently licensed as part of the state's plan to support this distinctive tourism product.
He explained that long Nile cruises from Cairo to Aswan are attracting growing demand. They last 11 days and include a diverse mix of tourism types such as cultural and spiritual tourism, as they pass through three main points on the route of the Holy Family, in addition to visits to ancient Egyptian, Islamic and Coptic archaeological sites. They also allow visitors to learn about the customs, traditions and distinctive heritage crafts of the residents of the cities on the banks of the Nile.
The meetings were attended by Eng. Ahmed Youssef, CEO of the Egyptian Tourism Promotion Authority; Mohamed Mohsen, Director General of Foreign Offices at the authority's Central Administration of Tourist Offices; Ahmed Nabil, Assistant Minister for Aviation and Follow-up; and Silvana Saeed, the authority's officer in charge of the UK market.
