Nweishi said he believed that the influx of Arab visitors is due to the government's decision to refund the sales tax on all goods sold during the shopping festival. Special menus are being offered this summer for the Arab guests, Nweishi said. Nabila Samak, public relations manager at the Semiramis Intercontinental, said the hotel was 100 per cent full. Omar Suleiman, head of the Egyptian Tourism Authority's office in Hurghada, said that a large number of Arab tourists are showing up in the Red Sea resort for the first time. We have had two charter flights from Jeddah and we expect more.
Tourist villages are full.
Suleiman attributed the boom to the Tourism and Shopping Festival. Many Arabs inquire about tickets as soon as they arrive at Hurghada airport.