The relationship between Egyptian and Turkish tourism is one of integration and not of competition," Hisham Zaazou said during his meeting with his Turkish counterpart in London earlier this week. While Turkey and Egypt are both Mediterranean touristic hubs; the former is one of the largest travel destinations in the world. Egypt, on the other hand, is much smaller in size, receiving 14 million tourists in 2010 compared to a whopping 27 million in the same year, according to United Nations World Tourism Organisation. Tourism in Egypt was severely hit following the social and political turbulences that occurred in the aftermath of the popular uprising that forced Hosni Mubarak out of office early 2011. It started to show a slow but steady recovery in 2012, according to the latest figures. Zaazou revealed the Egypt Air is currently cooperating with the Turkish Airlines to extend trips to areas previously not covered by the Egyptian airlines such as Brazil and South Korea. Last October, direct flights between Istanbul in Turkey and Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt's most sought-after beach towns, were initiated. The minister's statements come as part of Egypt's effort to gather international support for the struggling tourism indusrty. In September, Zaazou said that Egypt aimed to increase the number of visitors from a projected 12 million in 2012 to around 15 million in 2013 - which would equal the number of visitors in 2010.
