CAIRO: The hotel occupancy rate during Eid al-Fitr holiday ranged from 80 to 100 percent in Egypt’s Red Sea resorts of Hurghada, Sharm al-Sheikh and Marsa Alam, Chairman of Tourism Promotion Authority (TPA) Sami Mahmoud told The Cairo Post Friday.
“Over 70 percent of the guests are Egyptians who either booked travel deals
with Egyptian companies or who are visiting the resort cities in trips organized by several government departments and public sector institutions,” according to Mahmoud.
The occupancy rates had registered 100 percent in about 190 Egyptian hotels in Hurghada during the first day of Eid al-Fitr holiday and Egyptians accounted for over 72 percent of reservations, Hani Suleiman, Egyptian Hotel Chamber undersecretary in the South Sinai Governorate told The Cairo Post Friday.
“The occupancy rate in Sherm al-Sheikh, currently at its highest level since Christmas, has reached 87 percent, while it is 80 percent and 100 percent in Marsa Alam and Hurghada respectively,” said Mahmoud.
Mahmoud said he hopes domestic tourism“would contribute to raising occupancy rates of hotelsto compensate for the sharp decline in foreign and Arab bookings during the Eid al-Fitr holiday.”
Egypt’s tourism sector, which represents 11 percent of the country’s GDP, has been suffering from ongoing shocks ever since the 2011 uprising that toppled President Hosni Mubarak.
Despite a few instances of apparent recovery, instability and political turmoil continue to challenge the sector.
The number of tourists visiting Egypt increased by nine percent in the first half of 2015 compared to the same period last year, Mahmoud was quoted by Al-Masry Al-Youm early July.