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Travel & Tourism Committee

American citizen services and tourism promotion - December 21, 2004

On December 21, 2004, AmCham hosted the Travel and Tourism Committee’s meeting featuring guest speaker Mr. Peter Kaestner, consul general of the American Embassy in Cairo.

The focus of the embassy official’s presentation was the importance of keeping the American community residing in Egypt as well as visiting US tourists abreast of issues of interest to them. This was achieved, he said, through regularly updated embassy warden messages and via the US State Department’s travel advisory website. He also addressed the topic of the volume of American tourists visiting Egypt.

According to Kaestner, expatriate citizens can access the warden message by telephone, through its website or receive it via email by registering with the American Citizens Services Department. The bi-yearly updated travel advisories, the official said, are an important tool for the provision of information concerning safety issues in various countries and directly influence tourism numbers.

He added that the main challenge the embassy faced was educating American tourists about Egypt and suggested implementing a collaborative effort with AmCham to promote increased tourism.

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