Egypt welcomed approximately 838,000 visitors from the United Kingdom between January and September 2026, representing a 9.4 per cent increase compared with the corresponding period last year, as the country steps up efforts to strengthen its position in the British tourism market.
According to Ahram, Haitham Arafa of the Chamber of Tourism Companies and Travel Agencies said Wednesday on the sidelines of WTM London, which runs to 5 November with Egypt as Premier Partner for the first time, that Britain is among the markets supporting growth. Egypt’s overall arrivals rose 3 percent in the first half of 2026, UN Tourism said.
Arafa, a board member of the chamber and head of its training committee, put British arrivals at about 838,000 for the period. He expects this year’s total to exceed last year’s. He described WTM as the world’s second-largest tourism fair after ITB Berlin and a platform for destinations, tour operators, airlines and other travel partners. Egypt received about 1.1 million British tourists in 2025, up 17 percent from 2024, Arafa said. British press coverage has ranked Red Sea resorts among good-value destinations for UK travellers. Egypt’s role as Premier Partner is an important step in strengthening its presence in the British market and its standing with tour operators and airlines, Arafa said. He said it should lift demand for visits to Egypt in the coming period. Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy attended WTM last year.
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The tourism ministry’s expanded promotional campaign in London during the fair widens the destination’s reach and targets varied groups of tourists and interests, not one product, Arafa said. It uses outdoor advertising and digital screens at metro stations and busy areas, along with digital platforms and social media. Egypt’s new tourism promotion campaigns also target Gulf, European and Asian markets. Arafa said growth in British arrivals shows the need to keep developing promotion tools and highlighting the diversity of Egypt’s tourism products and experiences to attract more tourists with different interests.
He said Premier Partner status also supports Egypt’s place on the global cultural tourism map and promotes its civilizational and historical assets, helping diversify arrivals and strengthen competitiveness. The Grand Egyptian Museum was a focus of Egypt’s 2025 tourism year. Arafa praised Fathy’s efforts to strengthen Egypt’s presence at international tourism fairs and adopt varied, innovative promotional tools for different markets. He said Egypt’s active role in London reflects the ministry’s vision to increase arrivals and cement Egypt’s place among the world’s leading destinations.
Jet2 will resume flights to Egypt on 11 February 2027, its first since 2011, with 18 weekly flights and more than 4,000 seats a week to Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheikh, the company said in December 2025. Separately, TUI and DERTouristik are seeing the strongest rise in demand for Egypt among German travellers for winter 2026/27, trade site Travel Daily News reported on 8 October, without giving figures. Egypt received 12.7 million tourists in January–August 2026, up about 4.1 percent, according to cabinet figures. Fathy said arrivals in 2026 are expected to exceed 20 million, up from nearly 19 million in 2025.
EgyptAir launched direct Cairo–Birmingham flights on 25 October, with four weekly services on Boeing 737-8 MAX aircraft. Birmingham is the national carrier’s third UK destination after London and Manchester.
