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Thomas Cook collapses, bookings cancelled until April for only 25,000 tourists in Egypt Firm's collapse to shake Egyptian market until another company absorbs number of Thomas Cook's travellers: El Damery
British Tourism company, Thomas Cook officially announced on Monday that it collapsed after failing to secure its necessary funding, leaving thousands of holidaymakers stranded abroad. The company currently has 600,000 clients on vacation abroad, including more than 150,000 British travellers. Meanwhile, Chairperson of Thomas Cook's agent in Egypt Blue Sky Travel Agency and owner of the Sunrise Inn, and Chairperson of Egyptian Travel Agents Association (ETTA), Hossam El-Shaer, confirmed in a press statement on Monday that the English company declared bankruptcy at dawn after discussions between shareholders and financiers failed to reach an agreement. "We reached an agreement with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), a British government body, in which it will regulate the departure of Thomas Cooks travellers in Egypt according to the departure date of each tourist." He added that the company has sent a letter to hotels that it will be the guarantor of all receivables and that no amounts should be requested from tourists. According to the Chairperson of the ETTA, the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism is in coordination with the British embassy in Cairo to check on the British tourists that came to Egypt through Thomas Cook, in order to enjoy their trip in Egypt until they return back to their countries. El-Shaer showed that the bookings made by the bankrupt company in England were cancelled until April 2020 for only 25,000 tourists in Egypt. He pointed out that the company that went bankrupt is only the company located in England, and that the other subsidiary branches of Thomas Cook (Germany – Belgium – Netherlands – France – Poland and Scandinavia) are working naturally and separately from Thomas Cook England. Commenting on the firm's collapse, explaining its effect on the Egyptian tourism movement, Hesham El Damery, the retiring president of the Tourism Promotion Board Authority, told Daily News Egypt that the market will witness a shake until another great company like Thomas Cook absorbs the number of travellers. He explained further that Thomas Cook is considered a partner of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism, and for some hotels in Egypt, highlighting that it is considered as the second global exporter for tourism in Egypt. "Hence, of course there will be an effect, but we hope it will be a temporary one, and to see the tourism movement in Egypt coming back to its normal rates," he asserted.
