By Neena Bhandari
Cairo, Aswan & Luxor, 04.04.2011 (The Hindustan Times): It was meant to be a leisurely exploration of the celebrated monuments of the Nile Valley, but we found ourselves enmeshed in Egypt’s tumultuous events that created political history, marking the end of Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year dictatorial reign.
“It will be a while before travellers return to Cairo”, our guide, Hesham Aref, had told me on Skype in March. International tourist arrivals saw a decline of 45 per cent in the first quarter of 2011, but tourists are gradually returning to Egypt. This augurs well for the country’s ensuing political and social stability. Tourism is one of the four main revenue earners besides the Suez Canal and oil and gas exports. As the leading foreign exchange earner and representing one in every seven jobs, tourism is a crucial factor in Egypt’s economic recovery. In 2010, tourism accounted for 11.5 per cent of the GDP. As many as 14 million international tourists visited Egypt last year, generating nearly US$13 billion in international tourism receipts.