Norwegian Star' cruise ship has docked at the Port of Sharm El Sheikh with 2040 tourists of different nationalities on board, spokesman for Red Sea Ports Authority, Malak Youssef revealed in a statement to reporters. He added that Sharm El Sheikh Port received ‘Albatros' cruise ship، carrying 508 tourists of different nationalities on board، coming from the Port of Hurghada. The tourists visited Sharm El Sheikh's touristic attractions، such as Naama Bay, Dahab and Saint Catherine's Monastery, Youssef added. Head of Red Sea Ports Authority General Hisham Abu Sana said in a statement to reporters that the authority coordinated with their counterparts at the ports of Hurghada and Safaga, in order to ease the arrival procedures and provide comfort for the tourists. Tourism officials expect an increase in the number of tourists visiting Egypt in the coming period، as European countries started to lift the flights ban to Sinai. US, Russia and other European countries have issued bans on flights from and to Sinai، after a Russian passenger plane was downed over Sinai، in October 2015 ، leaving the entire flight crew members and passengers on board dead. The total number of tourists who visited Egypt reached 640179 tourists in February 2016، according to Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS). Egypt has been trying to boost tourism sector by organizing visits by celebrities including famous American actor Will Smith, Spanish club Barcelona star Lionel Messi, who took private tours of the pyramids, and Indian actress Parineeti Chopra visited Luxor tourist attractions in March.
