28 Mar 2023; MEMO: Egypt plans to offer tourists a multi-entry, five-year visa for $700 in a bid to boost tourism, the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities has announced.
According to a report in Anadolu, Ahmed Issa told reporters on Monday that further moves have been approved to encourage foreign tourism. They include a decision to facilitate the entry of Iranian tourists, as well as other facilities for Chinese, Indian, Moroccan and Algerian nationals.
"There are efforts to advance the tourism industry in the country, including facilities to obtain an electronic visa," he explained. The minister added that Chinese tourists can now obtain an entry visa upon arrival, even if they travel individually and not within a group.
The new facilities will also attract expatriates working in Iraq as well as Indians who hold residence permits in the Gulf countries, Schengen visas and expatriates from America, Japan, Britain, New Zealand and Canada.
Issa said that Iranian tourists can also obtain tourist visas upon arrival at airports in southern Sinai, within certain conditions set by the ministry, including being part of tourist groups who come through companies that coordinate the trip in advance with the Egyptians.
Inbound tourism to Egypt has improved during the first two months of this year, up by 30 per cent on an annual basis. While the number of tourists from Russia and Ukraine has decreased in recent months due to the war, there was a significant increase in the number of tourists coming from the United States, France, Italy and Britain.
According to Anadolu, nearly 11.7 million foreign tourists visited Egypt in 2022, with expectations of a 28 per cent increase in 2023.
