Egypt: The Russians are Coming |
|
Network this!
Western European tourists have new competition for hotel rooms in Egypt. For the first time, Russians are expected to surpass other visitors, with 2m projected to arrive in 2008. The Egyptian tourism industry has benefited from the shift. According to a report by lastminute.com, an online travel and tourism agency, Russian tourists spend more money and have lower expectations about service than their German, British and American counterparts.
Increased Russian presence in Egypt is part of a larger global trend. According to the Russian Tourist Industry Association, Russia is the world's fast growing outbound market with 9.36m Russians travelling abroad in 2007, a 20.8% increase compared to the previous year. In 2007, 1.5m of these tourists chose to spend their vacation in Egypt.
Russians, along with other tourists, have boosted the Egyptian tourism industry. According to the ministry of tourism, there has been strong growth in the sector through the first six months of 2008. Despite competition from other Mediterranean locations, Egypt has tried to develop distinct offerings at affordable prices. This strategy has lead to a 25% increase in tourist arrivals from June 2007 to June 2008, with numbers growing from 9.8m to 12.3m, according to Tourism Minister Zoheir Garranah. This is a significant increase for a sector that already accounts for 11.3% of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employs 13% of the total workforce.
Egypt has sought to diversify its tourism offerings to attract a broader range of visitors. "We now have a lot of people that don't come just for the historical side," Mohammed El Shabrawy, vice chairman & managing partner of American Express Travel Serves, told OBG. "They come for the diving, for the shopping and for the cruises."
And it is getting even easier for tourists to get to their chosen Egyptian destinations. Tourism has benefited from an increased number of charter flights from outbound markets such as Russia and Europe, making it simpler and more affordable to vacation in Egypt.
Although the sector is currently strengthening, the world economic downturn and the climbing local inflation may eventually affect tourist arrivals. Analysts believe that the global economic situation will have an uneven impact on the industry. Some lower-end travellers may decide to stay home, but it is anticipated that others will continue to visit Egypt. "We are still comparably low priced, so for the middle class tourist, Egypt is still a desirable and affordable destination," said El Shabrawy.
To capitalise on the recent growth and to avoid downturns, the Egyptian tourism operators will have to take proactive measures, said Garranah. "Increases in daily living and fuel costs, which impact airline prices, are a concern. The solution is not to raise ticket prices." He said that this strategy would likely fail, which would lead operators to start making special offers. If this happens, Egypt would become known as a discount destination, he told OBG in a recent interview.
Discount destination is a label Egypt is trying hard to avoid. Instead, to combat anticipated declines in arrivals from traditional markets, Egypt is working to expand its tourist bases, particularly into China and India. By the year 2020, China and India are expected to provide 150m tourists per year.
In addition to targeting burgeoning markets in Asia, Egyptian operators are trying to target less obvious markets, like Australia, El Shabrawy told OBG. To attract these customers, operators have developed a number of strategies and partnerships. They have joined with carriers like Alitalia and Singapore Airlines to offer free stopovers in Egypt, allowing visitors to have short stays as part of longer trips from Australia and Asia to Europe.
Given the rising costs that airlines bear and the influx of tourists to Egypt, this partnership is advantageous for both parties. "The airlines discovered that they cannot survive on their own. But if they partner with tour operators they can fill the seat, and the operators can sell the tours. They know they have to work together," said El Shabrawy.
Expanded collaboration might be the best protection for the Egyptian tourism industry against the global economic downturn. Product bundling would likely increase volumes and boost revenues. "When there is high demand, businesses tend to increase prices. But you have to give value for this increase. The more you give, the more you get," Garranah told OBG.
© Oxford Business Group 2008
Community Comments (0) - 
Comment on this article 
Comment on this article
The opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect Zawya. Read our Comment Policy.
Loading ...
Zawya Comment Policy:
-
Zawya encourages you to add a comment to this discussion. You agree that when you add content to this discussion your comments will not:
1.1 Contain any material which is libelous or defamatory of any person, is obscene, offensive, hateful or inflammatory or causes damage to the reputation of any person or organisation.
1.2 Promote sexually explicit material, violence, discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age or any illegal activity.
1.3 Be made in breach of any legal duty owed to a third party, such as a contractual duty or a duty of confidence.
1.4 Be threatening, abuse or invade another's privacy, or cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety.
1.5 Be used to impersonate any person, to misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person, or be likely to deceive any person.
1.6 Give the impression that they represent Zawya.
1.7 Advocate, promote or assist any unlawful act such as (by way of example only) copyright infringement or computer misuse. - The content posted on www.zawya.com is created by members of the public. The views expressed are theirs and unless specifically stated are not those of Zawya. Zawya reserves the right to review all comments prior to posting and edit or delete any contribution, but Zawya is not responsible for and can not be held liable for any content posted by members of the public on www.zawya.com.
- Zawya is not responsible for the availability or content of any third party sites that are accessible through www.zawya.com. Any links to third party websites from www.zawya.com do not amount to any endorsement of that site by Zawya and any use of that site by you is at your own risk.
- By submitting your comment, you hereby give Zawya the right, but not the obligation, to post, air, edit, exhibit, telecast, webcast, re-use, publish, reproduce, use, license, print, distribute or otherwise use your comments worldwide, in perpetuity.
Post Your Tender Notices for FREE
(No Sign-in Required)
Zawya Tenders is a Tender Notices service entirely driven by contribution
from issuers in both public and private sectors. It is not an e-tendering service and is entirely FREE.
As an Issuer, you can benefit from posting an unlimited number of Tender
Notices for FREE and reaching out to an online community of bidders.
The service also offers you a tool to track the interest of bidders to your
tenders 'live' online.
from issuers in both public and private sectors. It is not an e-tendering service and is entirely FREE.
As an Issuer, you can benefit from posting an unlimited number of Tender
Notices for FREE and reaching out to an online community of bidders.
The service also offers you a tool to track the interest of bidders to your
tenders 'live' online.
| Leisure and Tourism Tenders | Due Date |
Community Buzz
Stories
Companies
Most viewed companies by Community in the last 24 hrs
| Company Name | Country | Industry |
| Consolidated Contractors Company | Overseas | Construction and Design |
| Saudi Binladin Group | Saudi Arabia | Construction and Design |
| Saudi Telecom | Saudi Arabia | Telecommunications Services |
| Saudi Electricity Company | Saudi Arabia | Electric Utilities |
| Emirates Aluminium Company | UAE | Metal Production |
| Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority | UAE | Electric Utilities |
| Emirates Telecommunications Corporation | UAE | Telecommunications Services |
| Al Azizia Panda United Company | Saudi Arabia | General Retailers |
| Commercial International Bank (Egypt) | Egypt | Banking |
| Dodsal Engineering and Construction | UAE | Construction and Design |
Projects
Most viewed projects by Community in the last 24 hrs
| Project Name | Country | Sector |
| Takreer - Ruwais Refinery Expansion | UAE | Oil and Gas |
| Al Futtaim Carillion - Marina Hotel (Yas Island) | UAE | Real Estate |
| Emirates Aluminium (EMAL) - Smelter Complex - Phase 1 | UAE | Industry |
| Abu Dhabi DOT - Abu Dhabi Metro | UAE | Infrastructure |
| ENEC - Nuclear Power Plant | UAE | Power and Water |
| SATORP - Jubail Refinery and Petrochemical Complex | Saudi Arabia | Oil and Gas |
| Dubai RTA - Dubai Metro | UAE | Infrastructure |
| Al Safwa - Jeddah Cement Plant | Saudi Arabia | Industry |
| Qatar Bahrain Causeway Foundation - Qatar Bahrain Causeway | Bahrain | Infrastructure |
| Qatar Bahrain Causeway Foundation - Qatar Bahrain Causeway | Qatar | Infrastructure |