Tourists Trickle Back From Egypt

By Alexander Bratersky

Egypt attempted to return to normal life Sunday after almost two weeks of political protests and street clashes, with banks briefly resuming operations and political opposition entering into talks with the government, but it remained unclear whether peace could be sustained.

Tourists Refuse to Leave Egypt

By Alexey Eremenko

Protesters chanting slogans from atop an Egyptian army tank during a rally in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Saturday.

Most of the 30,000 Russian tourists currently vacationing in Egypt are reluctant to pack their bags despite violent anti-government protests that have killed at least 100 Egyptians and injured thousands more in the past week and prompted tourists from other countries to rush to the airport, the Federal Tourism Agency said Sunday.

Russians Go French For Old New Year

Reuters

As Russia grows richer, more than half a million Russians are visiting France each year, according to French tourism development agency Atout France. Numbers peak each January when Russians celebrate their New Year according to the Orthodox Julian calendar, 13 days after the Western New Year.

Sobyanin Appoints Tourism Veteran

By Olga Razumovskaya

Most foreigners don’t visit for pleasure, as language and infrastructure challenges outweigh Moscow’s charm.

Mayor Sergei Sobyanin appointed a veteran tourism industry lobbyist, Sergei Shpilko, as the new head of the city’s tourism committee, a statement said Thursday, in what may be a bid to attract more tourists.