Tourism Ministry Discusses Activation of Tourism Product “Umrah Plus”

Egypt's Deputy Minister of Tourism and Antiquities for Tourism Affairs, Ghada Shalabi, recently attended a meeting of the Culture, Tourism, Antiquities, and Information Committee in the Senate.

The committee, chaired by Representative Mahmoud Muslim and attended by Representative Suhair Abdel Salam and Representative Mahmoud Al-Qat, discussed the activation of the tourism product "Umrah Plus." 

The committee's Secretary, Representative Mahmoud Al-Qat, emphasized the importance of the "Umrah Plus" product for spiritual tourism and the need to expand the visitation of Islamic archaeological sites in Egypt.

In turn, Shalabi explained that "Umrah Plus" is a key tourism product that the Ministry is focusing on to promote Egypt as a tourist destination for pilgrims visiting from various countries around the world.

Moreover, the Deputy Minister highlighted the facilities provided by the Egyptian government for tourist entry visas for many nationalities, which would attract tourists who visit Saudi Arabia for Umrah to also visit Egypt and its Islamic archaeological sites through integrated tourism programs.

The committee members praised the idea of "Umrah Plus" and its potential to enhance spiritual tourism in Egypt, expressing their hopes for the success of this initiative and recommending continued follow-up by the Ministry to achieve its goals.

The product aims to allow pilgrims to visit Egypt and its archaeological and Islamic sites as part of their spiritual journey before or after their Umrah trip to Saudi Arabia.

It was noted that "Umrah Plus" would help in developing tourism from targeted Islamic markets and provide an opportunity for tourism companies to collaborate with their counterparts in Saudi Arabia and other targeted markets to offer integrated tourism programs for pilgrims visiting Egypt.

In addition, Cairo was announced as the tourism capital of the organization’s member states for the year 2026 by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation during the 12th session of the Conference of Tourism Ministers of the organization’s member states, held in Uzbekistan.