Alaa Aqel in an interview for “Al Mal”: “Jazz Resorts” plans to reach 65 hotels within two years
Jaz Hotels and Resorts Management Company, affiliated with Travco Group, aims to make investments worth EGP 6.650 billion to build 6 new hotels with a capacity of up to 2,200 rooms between the cities of Hurghada, Marsa Alam, Cairo and the northwest coast.
Alaa Aqel, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Jaz Hotels and Resorts Management Company
Alaa Aqel, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company, said in his interview with Al-Mal that these hotels are planned to be completed in the next two years, to be precise by the end of summer 2024, which will bring the number of hotel facilities associated with the company to 65 hotels with a capacity of 17,845 rooms instead of 59 facilities with a capacity of 15,645 thousand units.
investment plan
He added that it is planned to open 4 new hotels in the cities of Marsa Alam, two hotels, and in Hurghada and Cairo next to the Great Egyptian Museum during the next year.
Aqel indicated that two new hotels will open on the northwest coast with a capacity of 600 rooms in the summer of 2024 as part of the group’s future plan, noting that the company owns and operates around 5 hotels with a capacity of 2,000 rooms in the Almaz area of Marsa Matrouh .
He pointed out that the group signed a contract on the management of the “Jazz Asila” resort in Marsa Alam (under construction) with the tourism and real estate development company “Hotak”, with the participation of the “Holding for Tourism and Hospitality”. ”, “Egoth” and “Misr Tourism” of the Ministry of Economy Sector.
And he added that the resort, owned by Hotac, will open its first phase with a capacity of 156 rooms in the first quarter of 2024, adding that the investment cost for that phase is about 459 million pounds, and it is financed by the National Bank of Egypt through the Central Bank’s support initiative hotel facilities.
He pointed out that during the year 2028, the project plans to reach 550 hotel rooms, in successive stages.
In a related context, Aqel stated that the company has annual plans for continuous and partial renewal of its hotel capacity so that it does not have to close the hotel for development work, saying: “The development of our hotels is an integral part of our daily work to maintain the level of service we provide to tourists .”
Regarding the company’s revenue and profit, Aqel said there is an improvement in the volume of the group’s revenue and profit during the current year compared to 2021, without specifying the percentage of improvement.
We have 22 floating ships between Luxor and Aswan…and “Cultural” takes the lead in the current winter season
Regarding the conditions of the group’s floating hotels, he said the company owns about 22 hotels and floating ships between Luxor and Aswan, which are operating at full capacity, as each ship has 90 cabins.
He noted that the employment trend during the winter season for the year 2022/23 is promising. in the cities of cultural tourism (Luxor and Aswan), especially from Western European markets, including Germany, France and Belgium, along with Brazil, England, America and other nationalities.
He pointed out that the cities of cultural tourism are leading this winter in terms of hotel occupancy and the number of tourists, noting that the tourist resorts in South Sinai and the Red Sea will experience a boom in bookings at the last minute.
Aqel pointed out that the German market ranks first in terms of the number of tourists coming to the Red Sea, followed by the Romanian, Czech and Polish markets.
He emphasized that the inflationary crisis that Europe is suffering from will be in the interest of Egyptian tourism because the citizens of those countries will reach for cheap destinations, expecting that Egypt’s share during the next summer season will be better than the competition.
promotion
On the other hand, “Aqel”, who is also the president of the Business Board of the Chamber of Hotel Facilities, said that the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, represented by the Directorate for the Promotion of Tourism, is launching promotional and marketing campaign programs for the Egyptian destination. in various foreign markets.
He added that these campaigns aim to increase the volume of tourist flows to Egypt, while attracting new tourist markets, emphasizing their importance, especially in light of the fierce competition between different countries.
Poland and Romania are emerging markets, especially for cities on the Red Sea
The President of the Management Board of Hotel Rooms pointed out that Poland, Romania and the Czech Republic are among the emerging tourist markets, especially for the cities on the Red Sea, especially Hurghada.
It is important to note that the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, which represents the Egyptian Main Authority for the Promotion of Tourism, launched a new promotional campaign last October, lasting 6 weeks, to promote the Egyptian tourist destination during the winter tourist season 2022-23. in a number of targeted countries, including France, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States.
This campaign aims to promote long-term tourism during the winter and take advantage of high energy prices in European countries in the coming period, and also targets citizens who want to work remotely.
Russian war
Aqel believes that the Russian-Ukrainian war is not in the interest of the tourism industry worldwide, adding that its continuation will have negative repercussions especially on European countries, which will force their citizens to reduce or cancel their travel budget due to the economic conditions they suffer from.
Weak demand is the reason for the cancellation of flights from Sharma to Doha to transport tourists to watch World Cup matches
Aqel said that a plan has been made for direct flights from Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada to Doha, with the aim of transporting tourists who want to watch World Cup matches to the Qatari capital and then back, noting that the lack of demand prevented the implementation of this plan.
The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities has brought a series of benefits to attract fans participating in the 2022 FIFA World Cup and “Haya” fan card holders to visit Egypt’s tourist destination during and after the tournament, with the aim of maximizing Egypt’s tourism benefits from hosting the tournament which will last until December 18.
The concessions included the granting of a percentage discount to hotels in some tourist cities on electronically published accommodation prices for fan card holders, with a 50% discount for card holders throughout the tournament to visit archeological sites and museums of the Supreme Council of Antiquities that are open to the public.
I expect the Law on Trade Unions and Chambers to be published in the first quarter of 2023
Regarding the law on hospitality establishments, Aqel said that the issuance of executive regulations for this law and its approval by the Council of Ministers are pending, explaining that its purpose is for the ministry to manage the sector and for hotels to work with one party, which is “tourism “.
He expected the law on the federation and tourism chambers to come out in the first quarter of 2023, indicating that the sector is awaiting the adoption of a law so that there will be councils of chambers elected from the sector, rather than business committees. .
On the other hand, Aqel advocated for giving facilities and incentives to serious investors related to the process of obtaining permits, with the unification of the side with which the tourist investor deals (one stop shop), as well as suitable prices for new areas in order to establish tourism projects there. .
He also asked for a multi-year tax exemption for a serious investor in the event that he undertakes to build a hotel facility within a certain period, in order to realize the strategy of promoting the tourism sector and reaching 30 billion dollars of tourism. revenues.
It is important to note that the Egyptian government aims to double its revenues from the tourism sector to around $30 billion per year over the next three years, and also aims to increase arrivals at rates ranging from 25 to 30% per year.
Egypt generated tourism revenues during the fiscal year 2021/2022. which amounted to 10.7 billion dollars, according to data published by the Central Bank, while the number of tourists who came to the Egyptian destination reached about 8 million from different countries of the world during 2021.
