Egypt sees surging number of Chinese tourists: Cultural counselor

CAIRO – 14 June 2019: Chinese cultural counselor to Egypt, Shi Yuewen, has said more Chinese tourists are expected to visit Egypt in the coming years as ties between the two countries continue to grow stronger.

“Nearly half a million Chinese tourists visited Egypt in 2018 compared with only 300,000 in 2017, which is a big leap,” says Shi, who expects the number of Chinese visitors to exceed 500,000 in 2019.

According to Shi, Egypt’s continuing efforts to enhance stability and eliminate terrorism especially at heritage sites will encourage more Chinese to visit the country.

He also added in an article published by China Daily that there are also plans to overhaul services in hotels to offer tourists more competitive prices.

One of the world’s most ancient civilizations, Egypt has been working hard to uncover and preserve its archeological heritage across the country while organizing conferences abroad to promote its ancient heritage.

It is also striving to revive its ailing tourism sector which has been suffering an acute recession over the past few years due to political turmoil and security issues.

Describing Egypt as a “very important tourism country,” Shi encouraged the Egyptian government to provide more support for the tourism sector.

“Chinese tourists adore Egyptian monuments, and Egyptian archeological sites are well-known to the Chinese who have a similarly ancient civilization,” Shi adds.