Cairo, Sep 28 (TIWN) Some 4.9 million tourists visited Egypt in the first six months of 2022, an increase of 85.4 per cent compared to 2.6 million travellers in the same period of 2021, it was announced.

Marking World Tourism Day, the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) announced on Tuesday that “eight million tourists visited Egypt in 2021, a 117.5-per cent increase compared to 3.7 million tourists in 2020”, reports Xinhua news agency.  Meanwhile, hotel occupancy during the first half of 2022 was 52.6 million nights, a 63.6 per cent increase compared to 32.2 million nights in the first half of 2021, it said.  “Rise in numbers of tourists visiting Egypt in 2021 and the first half of 2022 is a good indication of recovery after the COVID-19 that caused a sharp decline in numbers due to the policies of the lockdown imposed worldwide,” said Ashraf al-Sahah, member of Egyptian Tourism Federation.