Light effects depicting the burial mask of Egyptian King Tutankhamun illuminate the sky during the opening ceremony of the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo on November 1, 2025, after two decades of delays. Photo source: Khaled DESOUKI / AFP / Profimedia
Egypt achieved an unprecedented touristic performance in 2025, as it was visited by approximately 19 million tourists, a new record and an increase of 21% compared to 2024, being exceeded even the forecasts for the year 2026, the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced on Sunday, according to EFE and Agerpres.
In an official press release, the relevant ministry stated that “Egyptian tourism had an exceptional and unprecedented performance in 2025, with Egypt receiving nearly 19 million tourists.” This represents “a new record with a growth rate of 21% compared to 2024, an achievement that reflects the growing power of Egypt as a tourist destination on the international stage”, the statement emphasizes.
At the beginning of December, the Egyptian Government had informed that in 2026 it is expected to receive about 18.6 million tourists and that this positive outlook for the sector will translate into a year-on-year increase of up to 5.8% in the number of visitors and an estimated income of about 19 billion dollars in 2029.
Egypt's Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Sherif Fathy, celebrated the 2025 figures, which he considered “a great achievement and a confirmation of Egypt's competitiveness”. The official also pointed out that “this growth exceeds the global average growth rate, estimated at only about 5%, reflecting the confidence of tourists from different countries of the world in Egypt as a diverse and safe tourist destination, capable of offering diverse and integrated tourist experiences.”
In 2025, Cairo, Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh and Marsa Alam topped the list of airports receiving the most tourists, reflecting the geographic diversity of Egyptian tourist destinations and their ability to attract different segments of tourists from multiple markets.
The relevant Egyptian minister expressed his confidence that, in the near future, he will “use these positive results to achieve a sustainable growth in tourism, which will have a direct impact on the national economy and strengthen Egypt's position as one of the main tourist destinations in the world”.
These positive results are announced within a structural economic reform plan that the Egyptian government has been implementing for the past two years, based on the promotion of tourism as one of its main sources of foreign exchange.
The projections for Egypt's tourism sector coincide with the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the improvement of security at the Red Sea and the recent opening of the Great Egyptian Museum, located in the area of the Pyramids of Giza, one of the main tourist attractions.
