By Akram Medhat
Minister of Tourism Dr. Rania Al-Mashat met with Peter Fankhauser, CEO of the global Thomas Cook Group, and senior company officials to discuss ways to increase inbound tourist traffic to Egypt, on the sidelines of ITB Berlin, in the presence of Hossam El-Shaer, chairman of the Chamber of Tourism Companies.
The head of Thomas Cook Group announced the opening of two hotels in El Gouna by the end of this year, under the partnership agreement between the group and Orascom Development.
He affirmed the company's readiness to cooperate more closely with the ministry to increase inbound tourist traffic to Egypt, adding that the new flight incentive program plays a role in increasing this traffic, especially given the growing demand to visit Egypt from their customers in many countries.
In a related context, it was agreed during the meeting that the Ministry of Tourism and Thomas Cook Group would cooperate to increase the number of tourists arriving from China to Egypt and develop tour programs to attract their customers from this important market.
For her part, Al-Mashat explained that executive steps have begun to update the hotel classification standards system to keep pace with international standards, in cooperation with the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
