CAIRO - Egypt lost its Arab tourists and waited for them in vain during the holy month of Ramadan. Maybe other competing countries made attractive offers, or Arab tourists were afraid due to the revolution and the lack of security. The ongoing trials and promotion campaigns have failed to achieve their intended goals. However, will Arab tourists return, possibly during the Eid el-Fitr (Lesser Bairam) as they always did, or will they come next year during Ramadan? In Al-Hussein district, particularly in Khan el-Khalili with its bazaars and souvenirs. The shops, tourism has been revived. Tourists love the area during day and night. Restaurants and coffee shops are ready to receive their guests, The shops are open and even the beggars have returned. But where are the Arabs who usually spend Ramadan in Cairo, attracted by the spiritual atmosphere during the holy month, and contribute to a market revival? Al-Khabar semi-official newspaper went on a tour in the Islamic Al-Hussein distrcr and noticed the absence of Arab tourists. What efforts should the Ministry of Tourism exert to promote Egypt in the Arab countries? Maged el-Tawi, a shop owner in Khan el-Khalili, stressed that Arab tourism had remarkably deteriorated this year. He added that recent events in Egypt were the main reason. El-Sayyed Hassan, an antique shop owner, also complained about the disappearance of Arab tourists. He said that last year he made LE3000 every single day, while now it was only LE250 ($42). Salah Hassan, another antique and souvenir shop owner, accused the Ministry of Tourism of not promoting Egypt efficiently. He added that the Ministry neglected the Arab tourism sector in favour of Europe, which was a big mistake, particularly with Ramadan in mind. Private tourism companies were equally to blame; they didn't offer specific programmes to attract Arab tourists, nor did they cut prices. Shop owner Mohamed Gaber noted that the lack of Arab tourists affected trade in general and contributed to the recession. A lone Arab was seen in Al-Hussein, but he was not a tourist. Fayez Bu Zeid explained: “I'm here because of work. It's not a good time. A friend of mine had even all his money stolen.” A man from Jordan stated that he was in Cairo to complete some documents associated with his work. He thought that the violent scenes shown on satellite channels contributed to the absence of people from Jordan. Seif el-Amawi, a member of the Egyptian Tourism Federation, reiterated that usually the number of Arab tourists increased substantially during Ramadan and that they loved all the special cultural events taking place during the holy month. Arab tourists liked the five-star hotels overlooking the Nile, but that most of these hotels were situated near Tahrir Square (Liberation Square), the heart of the revolution, which put Arab tourists off. On the other hand, the head of the Investors Association in Sharm el-Sheikh, Hisham Ali, was optimistic that Arab tourism would soon witness a revival, because many Arab families preferred to spend their holidays in Egypt.
