Egypt has welcomed 61,481 UK tourists in January and February 2018, marking a 39% increase compared to the same period last year, the Sun reports. British tourists have favored Egypt, Turkey, and Tunisia this year as they search for cheaper vacations. The surge comes despite the continuing ban on direct flights between the UK and top tourist destination Sharm El Sheikh. The country’s ailing tourism sector has been recovering slowly in the past few years, with a 66.5% y-o-y rise in group travel to Egypt in 2017.