'Stability has encouraged tourists to visit Egypt,' says Marriott International CEO

Arne Sorenson, president and CEO of Marriott International, said that travellers are not afraid to come to Egypt anymore given the country's political stability.

“Egypt is a really compelling tourist destination, and the stable political situation has helped regain trust in the country as a favourite tourist destination,” he told the Egyptian press during a round table meeting this week.

Sorenson also pointed out that Egypt has historically been a key market for Marriott International, and ranks in their top five markets for the Middle East and Africa.

Sorenson added that there is considerably more stability and optimism in the market since his last visit to Egypt in 2012, when there was too much uncertainty.

Although tourism is not back to peak levels, the numbers are getting better.

More than 8 million tourists visited Egypt last year, compared to 4.5 million in 2016. This helped attract new investments in the tourism and hospitality sector.

International tourism is going up as well despite a rise of terrorist attacks in different parts of the world over the last few years.