Tunis to ‘substitute’ Colosseum, Russians ‘invade’ Israel
(ANSAmed) – NAPLES, APRIL 2 – ”Sharm El Sheik and Mars Alam are not Tahrir Square. The Egyptian population struggled for its freedom, but tourism for us is priceless and no visitor has ever been in danger,” said Egypt’s Tourism Agency director at the Mediterranean Tourism Bourse (BMT) in Naples. Over the past year the country boasting pyramids and the Red Sea has freed itself of the dictator Mubarak, but paid heavy price in terms of its image. ”There was a 50% decline in tourists in 2011 on 2010,” said Abdel Gabbar. The political situation is now moving towards normalisation, and Egypt is ready to climb back on top. ”In 2010 over a million Italians visited our country and I am convinced that they will be back. Even here in Naples we have received good signals from tour operators.” Good signs are also seen for other North African countries relying heavily on tourism. All are at Naples BMT, while waiting for Algeria and Libya to begin considering mass tourism. Among the favourite destinations of Italian tourists is Tunisia, which is relaunching its sector by focusing on the joy of freedom: ”Tunisia is now different from the one in 2010 only in that it now has freedom of though, and people are moving peacefully towards democracy. However, tourism is fundamental since it employs 450,000 people directly and another 1.5 million in ancillary industries,” said Abdelmalek Behiri, head of the Italian branch of the Tunisian Tourism Agency. ”In this first part of 2012, the bookings trend was on already on the rise, and we are seeing good signs,” continued Behiri, who underscored also the increase in flights to the North African country with three a week from Naples and two from Catania and Palermo. The country offers the sea as well as culture, and Tunisia is ready to take the place of… the Colosseum.
”In a few weeks,” Behiri said, ”the Colosseum will begin to undergo restoration and will therefore not be able to be visited for a long time. For tourists around the world, the time has therefore come to visit the El Jem amphitheatre.” The amphitheatre of the Tunisian town is very similar to the Colosseum but smaller: it had a capacity of about 35,000 spectators to the symbol of Rome’s 50,000. Morocco suffered fewer negative repercussions from the Arab Spring, since it did not undergo deep-seated political changes.
Marrakech and the surrounding area, therefore, expect steady growth. ”In 2011 we saw a 5% rise in arrivals by Italian tourists and for 2012 we are aiming for further growth of 3-4% overall,” said Jazia Sntissi, director of the National Tourism Agency in Italy. This year Morocco is also focusing on both imperial cities and those flanking the sea, alongside the substantial tourism revenue from golf in the country. On the other side of the Mediterranean, Israel continues to focus strongly on the Italian and European market, but the new wave of tourists is arriving from the north, from Russia.
”Russian tourists,” confirmed Tzvi Lotan, director of Israel’s National Department of Tourism, ”is invading the entire world and even in our country over the past three years Russia has become the second top country in terms of tourism revenue after the US.” However, if one considers the European Union as a state, the EU is the main source of arrivals to Israel, a country which focuses on three points: entertainment in locations like Eilat, the seaside in Tel Aviv and relaxation at the Dead Sea.”(ANSAmed).
