Cairo găzduiește Conferința Societății Americane de Turism

NEW YORK, NY (September 12, 2008) – Egypt’s bustling metropolis of Cairo, founded in the 6th century by Arab settlers and now a city of 16 million, will showcase its ancient sites, as well as its modern pulse to delegates at the American Tourism Society’s (ATS) Fall 2008 Conference, October 26-30.

The Egyptian Tourist Authority is hosting ATS’s first-ever conference in that country. Delegates to the ATS conference will be able to log on to the ATS web site (www.americantourismsociety.org) and, for the first time, take a virtual tour of the conference venue – this time, getting a taste of “Egypt – Nothing Compares.”

Phil Otterson, executive VP, External Affairs, Tauck World Discovery and ATS president said, “We are pleased to debut this cutting edge website technology with the Egyptian Conference because the destination itself, and our conference headquarters at the brand new Sofitel Cairo El Gezirah Hotel, are so spectacular. We hope to heighten the excitement and interest of the delegates, as well as attract new members through the Virtual Tour.” Don Reynolds, ATS executive VP and Dave Spinelli, Global Web Solutions and an ATS board member, were responsible for creating the ATS website Virtual Tour.

“Egypt, although most famous for its ancient archaeological sites, is also a constantly-evolving destination, with new hotels, infrastructures and attractions,” said Sayed Khalifa, director, Egyptian Tourist Authority in New York. “We are looking forward to having the opportunity to show the ATS delegates, even those who have visited Egypt previously, both modern and ancient Cairo, including our newly-opened historical sites. We hope that this ATS conference will result in new and expanded tour programs to our country.”

The ATS conference headquarters, the luxurious 5-star Sofitel Cairo El Gezirah Hotel, is located on the Nile and within walking distance of the Egyptian Museum.

During the three-day conference, which will be jam-packed with key tourism industry sessions, conference delegates will also be taken to see some of the famous sights and sounds of Cairo, including The Egyptian Museum, the Citadel of Salah El-Din, Mohammed Ali Mosque, the Khan El Khalily Bazaar, a shopper’s paradise, and the Pyramids and the Sphinx, part of a World Heritage Site region, and the only original Wonder of the World still standing.

The ATS post-conference Product Development Tour will be a luxurious Nile Cruise. Delegates will have the opportunity to view Egypt’s splendors from the comfort of the deck, and then disembark to more intimately experience the unparalleled sights of these exceptional ancient cities. The boat will make stops at Esna, to see the Temple of Edu, (the best preserved of all Pharonic ruins) and Komo Ombo, where the splendid temple of Komo Ombo is located, and finally to Aswan.

Egypt Air, the official ATS conference carrier, will be offering special rates for ATS delegates.

The American Tourism Society (ATS) was established in 1989 by a group of US tourism industry executives. It is a nonprofit, nonpolitical travel industry organization focused on transformational destinations, whose membership includes tour operators, hotels and resorts, international airlines, cruise lines, Government Tourist Offices, meeting and incentive planners, travel agents, tourism educators and public relations and marketing firms dedicated to promoting, developing and expanding high-quality, reliable travel between North America and the ATS destination areas: the Baltics, Central and Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean / Red Sea Region and Russia. ATS holds semi-annual meeting and trade shows hosted by different destination countries each year and has a website www.americantourismsociety.org.

For ATS Conference Registration and to take a Virtual Tour visit www.americantourismsociety.org; for more information contact Don Reynolds, 212.893.8111, Fax 212.893.8153; email: [e-mail protejat] .