Egypt’s tourism up 20 percent in November

CAIRO, Egypt – Egypt’s tourism was up 20 percent in November, with the number of tourists surpassing 600,000, according to the latest report from the Ministry of Tourism.

Despite the monthly leap, though, the figures are still 39 percent below the same month from last year, when 1.1 million tourists visited Egypt.

The countries with the most visitors were Russia, England, Germany and Ukraine.

In the year leading up to November, Egypt saw around 8.7 million tourists, compared with 10.5 from the first eleven months in 2012.

Tourism Minister Hisham Zazou said in October that Egypt aims to attract 13.5 million visitors next year, bringing in around $11 billion. The country has launched an international campaign to lure back foreigners deterred by political turmoil.

The tourism industry, once worth more than a tenth of economic output, had been improving since the 2011 revolution, but has since suffered a blow after this summer’s political upheaval, which saw Islamist president Mohamed Morsi ousted after mass protests against his rule.