Egypt's tourism engine is running at record pace — 9 million visitors arrived in the first half of this year, after a historic 19 million in 2025. First quarter tourism revenues alone approached $5.1 billion, with the Grand Egyptian Museum drawing thousands of visitors daily and billions in new hotel capital flowing into the Red Sea. Cairo has set its sights on 30 million tourists a year by 2030. Joining us now is Remon Naguib, Chief Investment Officer at Orient Hospitality Group. Remon, it's a pleasure to have you.
Likewise, thank you.
9 million visitors in six months — but the growth wasn't smooth. A strong first quarter was followed by a softer April as regional tensions weighed on bookings. Across your properties and international partners, how resilient is this demand and how much of it can investors actually count on?
In the second half of the year we expect a significant increase, especially as we enter the summer season, which is generally strong for Egypt. During the recent period we did see a slowdown, but what we're seeing now across the Red Sea, North Coast, and Cairo is occupancies above 90% — and that was expected. Demand is also building for the final quarter of the year. The return of European travellers is very positive for us — the German and UK markets are our major source markets, Russians are performing very well, and the French market is picking up. New charter flights are starting, and local flights are increasing too, because a lot of demand has shifted from GCC destinations to Egypt. The North Coast in particular is performing very strongly — almost fully booked throughout the summer. As investors, we are actively looking for new opportunities in Egypt because the outlook to 2030 is strong. We're already receiving requests from European, Asian, and GCC investors who want to joint venture with us in different areas. To meet the 2030 vision, Egypt needs to double its room inventory, and the investor appetite is there.
Tourism is one of Egypt's most important sources of hard currency alongside the Suez Canal and remittances. Is the sector actually delivering the dollar receipts the economy needs, or is too much value leaking out to foreign operators, commissions, and imported inputs?
There is typically a 20 to 25% leakage, and that's normal in the tourism industry. We work with operators and OTAs who take commissions — these are our source channels, and that leakage represents around 25 to 30% of hotel billing. The country is trying to help by increasing flights, particularly domestic ones, because part of Egypt's income comes from flights, hotels, restaurants, and other services combined. But in general, what we see is that Egypt's NOI is among the highest of any tourism destination globally. When we run feasibility studies on investment across different countries, Egypt consistently comes out at the top. And the dollar availability has genuinely improved — the central bank is now actively supporting investors to ensure currency is accessible.
The government target is 30 million visitors by 2030. That requires a massive expansion in hotel rooms. Is capital being deployed fast enough, and what is the real bottleneck today — financing costs, land, licensing, or investor confidence?
Investor confidence — though that has improved significantly over the last two years as currency stability returned and the government introduced strong investment incentives. The main obstacle we still see is financing from certain international markets, which is not always forthcoming for specific areas in Egypt. Land is also becoming a challenge because costs are rising, partly due to government action against developers who were sitting on land without developing it. But the country is actively helping investors access opportunities and supporting them with incentives and taxation relief. To hit the 2030 numbers, it will take serious effort from both investors and the government. The good news is that holiday homes and hotel apartments are now being regulated and are starting to fill a meaningful gap — a lot of investors are converting residential buildings into hotels, which will help significantly.
Should Egypt keep measuring success in arrivals — 20 million, 30 million — or is the smarter play revenue per visitor, longer stays, and higher rates? Where is Egypt leaving money on the table?
Actual revenue is what matters most to us as investors, because revenue generates the NOI and the jobs. We need to balance rates with volume — for three and four-star properties you need volume, but for five-star you need average rate. The opportunity in Egypt right now is in five-star and high-end product development, where you can generate 40 to 50% higher NOI. We still have a shortage of that product in certain key destinations. Entertainment infrastructure is the other major gap — every investor needs to think about it. The revenue stream from entertainment is very high, and as Egypt builds out more experiential offerings across its destinations, it will attract higher-spending visitors and create a genuinely differentiated experience.
Remon Naguib, Chief Investment Officer at Orient Hospitality Group, thank you very much for being with us today.
Thank you.
