Tourists enjoy kiteboarding in Hurghada

CAIRO – 12 August 2018: Tourists from all over the world enjoy kitesurfing now in the Egyptian city of Hurghada’s Gouna, Macadi, and Soma Bay. They enjoy being carried over water in small boards pulled by power kites in Hurghada’s open beaches with no “windbreakers”, which is an ideal spot for this sport.

Ahmed El-Sayegh, an owner of a kitesurfing center, said that tourists coming from all over the world especially Europeans, are passionate about this sport. He asserted that nearly half of tourists who visit these places in Hurghada come to play this sport.

Ashraf Emam, a kitesurfing trainer, said that kitesurfing competitions require competitors to show skills and perform a number of professional acts using their boards in a given period of time.

A number of referees observe and evaluate the competitor’s performance. Another form of these competitions requires competitors to surf between two gates; the one to reach the finish line first wins.

While kitesurfing competitions are held in different parts in the world including France, Spain and the Canary Islands, Egypt organized a kitesurfing competition with the participation of 50 Egyptian and foreigner players in March 2016.

In 2017, the Red Sea governorate’s Marsa Alam hosted another kitesurfing competition with 85 participants, with the aim of refreshing tourism.

Tourism in Egypt

Eight years ago, more than 14.7 million tourists arrived in Egypt, while Paris attracted only 8.2 visitors in the same year of 2010.

In 2015, the tourism industry witnessed another hit when a Russian plane was shot in the Sinai Peninsula in a terrorist attack claimed to be carried out by ISIS elements. As a result, tourism flow fell to its lowest number to reach only 4.8 million.

Three years later, Russian flights to Egypt resumed and the country restored its peace and order. Indications reveal that Egypt will welcome more than 8.3 million visitors in the current year.

Additional reporting by Nawal Sayed