Egypt's visa on arrival may not be applicable to individual tourists
Mar 19, 2015, 3:33 am
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Egypt's visa on arrival may not be applicable to individual tourists
Egypt is instituting a broader visa requirement that means more of us will need to submit our passport to an Egyptian embassy/consulate in advance of visiting Egypt as a tourist.
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2015/03...as-in-advance/
So much for wanting to encourage more tourism.
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2015/03...as-in-advance/
So much for wanting to encourage more tourism.
Mar 19, 2015, 6:47 am
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You can believe the tourist institutions will be fighting hard against this. But I'm not sure how successful they can be, because on the other side are the security authorities worried on two fronts:
- inflitration by terrorists, and
- visits by journalists and activists who get up the government's nose by criticising its approach to protecting human rights.
Around a quarter of visitors to Egypt currently travel independently. The proportion arriving at Cairo is much higher. I reckon that's something over two million visitors who will now have to go through the faff and expense of applying for visas through Egypt's consulates. And it's hard to see the consulates tackling the increased demand without upping the fees.
Mar 19, 2015, 6:55 am
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Sad - especially as only a couple of weeks ago Cairo hosted a conference addressing Developments and Challenges in the Hospitality & Tourism Industry.
You can believe the tourist institutions will be fighting hard against this. But I'm not sure how successful they can be, because on the other side are the security authorities worried on two fronts:
Around a quarter of visitors to Egypt currently travel independently. The proportion arriving at Cairo is much higher. I reckon that's something over two million visitors who will now have to go through the faff and expense of applying for visas through Egypt's consulates. And it's hard to see the consulates tackling the increased demand without upping the fees.
You can believe the tourist institutions will be fighting hard against this. But I'm not sure how successful they can be, because on the other side are the security authorities worried on two fronts:
- inflitration by terrorists, and
- visits by journalists and activists who get up the government's nose by criticising its approach to protecting human rights.
Around a quarter of visitors to Egypt currently travel independently. The proportion arriving at Cairo is much higher. I reckon that's something over two million visitors who will now have to go through the faff and expense of applying for visas through Egypt's consulates. And it's hard to see the consulates tackling the increased demand without upping the fees.
The reasons for this visa requirement change are because of the militarized Egyptian government's concerns about terrorists and about journalists and activists monitoring and criticizing the Egyptian government's human rights-violating record.
When it comes to the military players who have the ownership relationships/interests as or with the Egyptian tourism market players, they have way more money at stake with charter tourist destinations' properties than the other destinations' properties. Thus, I'm not surprised they gave the charter tourist visitors a continuation of past practice. For the military complex -- inclusive of security industrial complex retirees -- this is their version of a balancing act, as they eat up a larger part of the charter tourist pie than of the independent tourist pie.
Last edited by GUWonder; Mar 19, 2015 at 7:05 am
Mar 20, 2015, 3:59 pm
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Wasn't that change of gauge in the work even before this visa policy change?
Don't some of the charter tour groups sometimes still use space on scheduled common carrier flights, including some BA planes?
I've been on some BA flights and SK flights where the majority of passengers seemed to be part of organized tour groups.
Don't some of the charter tour groups sometimes still use space on scheduled common carrier flights, including some BA planes?
I've been on some BA flights and SK flights where the majority of passengers seemed to be part of organized tour groups.
Mar 21, 2015, 2:51 am
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Wasn't that change of gauge in the work even before this visa policy change?
Don't some of the charter tour groups sometimes still use space on scheduled common carrier flights, including some BA planes?
I've been on some BA flights and SK flights where the majority of passengers seemed to be part of organized tour groups.
Don't some of the charter tour groups sometimes still use space on scheduled common carrier flights, including some BA planes?
I've been on some BA flights and SK flights where the majority of passengers seemed to be part of organized tour groups.
Sure, many tour operators buy seats on scheduled flights. Indeed, any of them offering "city breaks" to Cairo will be (more or less) forced to do this.
I'd expect BA's Sharm flight will be attractive to the more upmarket tour operators, not least because of the brand and the flexibility its schedule will offer.
Mar 21, 2015, 10:37 pm
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Egypt's visa on arrival may not be applicable to individual tourists
Why Egypt isn't using some sort of electronic visa or travel authority instead of having to send or take your passport into an embassy or consulate to obtain permission is beyond me.
Mar 21, 2015, 11:07 pm
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So does this affect all non-organised tourists, or just "groups" of less than two people (i.e. solo travelers)?
So does this affect all non-organised tourists, or just "groups" of less than two people (i.e. solo travelers)?
Mar 24, 2015, 12:12 pm
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VISA requirements from the Egyptian Embassy in Washington, DC.
http://www.egyptembassy.net/consular...-requirements/
For an American tourist the rates have fallen from $25 to $15.
http://www.egyptembassy.net/consular...-requirements/
For an American tourist the rates have fallen from $25 to $15.
Mar 24, 2015, 12:26 pm
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no more visa on arrival in Egypt...
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Mid...-visitors.ashx
Looks like Egypt will no longer offer visa on arrival for tourists... as if their tourism industry wasn't hurting enough.
Looks like Egypt will no longer offer visa on arrival for tourists... as if their tourism industry wasn't hurting enough.
. More tourists, higher difficulty with visa are inversely proportional.
Mar 28, 2015, 1:50 am
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The government of the day did this in 2011. It was rescinded after a few weeks, when they realised the logistical nightmare it created. Does anyone think that Egyptian consular and visa sections are in any way organised to handle an additional 2.5 million applications in the currently stated delay of 2 to 5 working days - or even at all?