As part of diversifying the tourism offering of Egypt and to help develop the north-western coastal region of the African country, Egyptian government has been aggressively developing a new destination, New Alamein City, situated on the Mediterranean coast, about 300 km northwest of Cairo.

Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Sherif Fathy says that the government’s efforts in developing the area as a new tourism destination have begun to pay off as for the first time ever, the New Alamein City has attracted tourists from 104 countries and that too within the first seven months of the year.

Addressing a press conference in New Alamein City, Fathy said that the city had emerged as a major tourist attraction thanks to various initiatives including the New Alamein Festival, which began on July 11 and will continue until August 30.

Sherif Fathy

“The New Alamein City was able in record time to transform into a very large tourist city, and the Alamein Festival with the efforts of the United Company shed more light on the city,” Fathy said.

“The government has a goal to reach 30 million tourists and for that to happen, there are hypotheses that were not reached due to the geopolitical situation and the slowdown in investment in building hotel rooms, and the only thing that separates us from the 30 million tourists is building hotel rooms and nothing else,” he added.

Fathy said that the airports of Borg El Arab, Marsa Matrouh and Alamein facilitated access to various tourist destinations.

The Alamein Festival comes within the framework of the government’s strategy to launch national initiatives with the aim of highlighting the urban development witnessed by the entire Northwest Coast region, headed by the New Alamein City, and promoting tourism in the city and its charming beaches and moderate climate most days of the year, as well as promoting investment opportunities in the Northwest Coast region, and emphasising the role of soft power in supporting the State’s efforts to develop and develop various tourist destinations.

Fathy said that tourism has become advanced despite the existing challenges, but Egypt has become able to find solutions to all tourism problems.

“We have submitted two initiatives to the Cabinet and we are ready to fully cooperate with the private sector, and anyone interested in investing in Egypt is welcome until we finally reach the mutual benefit of investment,” he added.

The Alamein Festival witnesses more than 20 diverse events, including artistic theatrical shows produced by the most famous producers and starring the brightest big stars and young artists.

Covering an area of 205 sqkm in a former mined area from World War II era, New Alamein City has been envisioned as an integrated fourth-generation city with the latest technological and urban projects in the Middle East. It is a cornerstone of Egypt’s broader ‘Western North Coast Development Project’, which aims to transform and boost the Northwest Coast’s economy to become a global financial and tourist hub.

To boost connectivity, a high-speed rail network line, over 675 km in length, is being constructed from Cairo to the northwestern coast, including Alamein.