Rasha Sadek gauges the impact of the recent border unrest on the already-struggling tourism industry Last week's eastern border clashes -- which flared after Israeli forces shot dead five Egyptian security and military personnel -- have led to fears that tourism in Sinai, still recovering from the aftermath of the 25 January Revolution, will be further derailed. Nadia Shalabi, manager of a four-star hotel in Taba, told Al-Ahram Weekly that a quarter of reservations had been cancelled following the border unrest. "The clashes were 40km away, and we were deeply affected. Following the revolution the bulk of our clients have been Israeli-Arabs and they are rarely affected by threats or clashes. But not this time. The cancellations extend well past the Eid holidays." Shalabi attributes much of the panic among travellers to Israeli warnings against holidaymakers travelling to Sinai. But, she points out, "even Egyptian travellers are afraid to come to Taba, claiming that the roads are unsafe". The picture is no brighter further south. In Nuweiba, 100km from where the clashes occurred, two-star resort owner Hussein Badrawi says 95 per cent of bookings have been cancelled, including for the high season months of September and October. Like Taba, a majority of Nuweiba's visitors are Israelis and Israeli-Arabs. "By this time of year we are usually fully booked. Yet the only guests we are seeing at the moment are individual travellers," says Badrawi. "It seems Egyptian holidaymakers are as nervous as the Israelis." "Since the revolution, the tourist industry has been in free fall, especially in Sinai," says Wessam Hamed, undersecretary for public and international relations at the Ministry of Tourism. According to ministry figures, tourism dropped by 80 per cent in February, 60 per cent in March and 35 per cent in April, compared to last year. "Things began to look better when ousted president Hosni Mubarak left Sharm El-Sheikh and his trial began in Cairo. Following the border clashes we are receiving reports that the peninsula's east coast is suffering dramatically," Hamed told the Weekly. "Israel's warning to its nationals against coming to Sinai complicated the situation even further, as did the demonstrations in front of the Israeli embassy in Cairo. The east coast largely depends on Israeli tourists." Is there a quick fix? "Until security is re-established tourism will remain in the doldrums," says Hamed. Minister of Tourism Mounir Fakhri Abdel-Nour has been keen to strike a more optimistic note. He describes the effect of the border unrest as "a passing cloud". Abdel-Nour denies that Israel has withdrawn its nationals from the Sinai. "Practically, there hasn't been any reported damage. Charters arrive regularly and no reservations have been cancelled," he told the Weekly. A few months ago Abdel-Nour said Egypt was aiming for 10 million tourists by the end of the year, compared with 13 million in 2010. Are such figures still possible? Tourist compounds in cities like Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada say they haven't been affected by last week's Egypt-Israel clashes. "Although influx came to a standstill immediately after the revolution, reservations saw a hike when many countries lifted flight bans to Egypt. The border incident has had no impact whatsoever here," says Omar Abdel-Aziz, an employee at a Sharm El-Sheikh hotel. The same seems true of Hurghada where one luxury hotel contacted by the Weekly reports 100 per cent occupancy. Experts in the field of tourism agree that the faster the border situation is contained the better the tourism outlook will become. "It's all about crisis management and the state's decisions regarding the situation," says Ahmed Balbaa, head of the tourism committee affiliated to the Businessmen Association. It might, after all, be possible to attain the 10 million goal. But the downside is that some property owners are left to suffer the negative economic impact of the revolution and the border unrest. "My consolation is that we regained our dignity and are respected by everyone. Some sacrificed their lives for this aspiration, mine is a little price to pay," Badrawi, the Nuweiba resort owner, concluded.
