Egypt tourist numbers to hit 15 mn in 2020 -WTO official: Egypt is poised to receive some 15 mn tourists this year, up 15% from 13 mn in 2019, a World Tourism Organization (WTO) official told MENA, citing figures from the global tourism body. WTO economic adviser and member of the UN Economic Commission for Europe Saeed El Batouti said that Egypt's stability and current policies are increasing the country’s attractiveness as a tourist destination, but called for the country to do more to tap new markets and increase religious tourism. El Batouti, a board member of the German Travel Association, noted that German tourist arrivals grew the fastest last year, reaching 2.5 mn from just 707k in 2018.

The WTO isn’t the only one hyping Egypt’s tourism prospects for the year ahead: Egypt is increasingly being noted internationally as a top destination for travel for 2020. Egypt has tied for the top spot in the list of emerging or “off-the-beaten-path” destinations for 2020, according to the results of annual travel trends survey released by the United States Tour Operators Associations (USTOA). Luxury tour group Abercrombie and Kent last month predicted that Egypt would be one of the year’s hottest tourist destinations, while the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) has also got us onto the Insider’s travel list of “12 places you should visit in 2020”.