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The Journey of the
Holy Family to Egypt
Reham Samir
Director of Egyptian
Tourist Office- Benelux
Utrecht , October 7th, 2016
The Power of Religious Tourism
• One of the most important and the fastest growing
segments in the travel Industry. ( UNWTO Figures:
300 million tourists visit the world’s major
religious sites each year)
• One of the most important sources of income in
many countries.
• Religious Tourism is more stable versus regular
tourism.
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What are the opportunities for
the Government of Egypt to
boost religious tourism?
• Egypt has played an important
role in the history of Christianity’s
Holy Family, as well as in the roots
of Judaism and Islam.
• There are many sites that are of
great significance to all of the
three major monotheistic religions,
such as; (Al Moalaka church 7th
century , Ibn Touloun Mosque
9th century, Saint Catherine
byzantine Monastery 6th century
– 2nd worldwide after Vatican to
host the most ancient Christian
manuscripts).
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Who is the first tourist visit
Egypt ?
Flight of the Holy Family to Egypt Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and
stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young
Child to kill Him." ( Mattew 2:13)
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Map of the Holy Family Route
THE HOLY FAMILY AT EL-ZARANIK
AND FARMA
• El-Zaraniq, west of El-Arish
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The Holy Family At The Town of
Mostorod
Route of the Holy Family
Veil of the Sanctuary - Virgin Mary
Church, Belbeis Virgin Mary Church - Belbeis, Sharqiah.
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THE HOLY FAMILY AT SAKHA
TOWN
THE HOLY FAMILY AT WADI EL
NATROUN
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THE HOLY FAMILY AT MATAREYA &
AIN SHAMS & ZEITOUN THE HOLY
• THE HOLY FAMILY AT
ZEITOUN
St. Mary's Tree - Matariyah,
Cairo
THE HOLY FAMILY WITHIN
THE AREA OF OLD CAIRO
• IN CENTRAL CAIRO
The Church of the Virgin Mary in Zuweila Alley.
The Church of St George the Martyr.
The Church of St. Mercurios Abu Sefein (the Two Swords).
The Convent of the Virgin Mary.
The Convent of St George.
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Old Cairo An icon from the Church of Abu Sefein.
The Holy family in Maadi
.
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Minia
Viel of Sanctuary - El Barsha Monastery
Church - Minia
Assiut • Virgin Mary
Monastery - Gabal
(Mount) Dronka.
An icon at the Virgin Mary Monastery -
Gabal Dronka.
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Efforts Taken to introduce
Religious Tourism
• Establishing a committee that responsible for touring the sites
on the route to investigate whether they are accessible or not,
whether there are enough facilities for tourists, whether the
number of hotels is adequate. It is on that basis that we decide
which sites should be put on the official itinerary, and to make
sure that these sites meet the expectations of the customer.
• Several restorations and conservation works at some of the
most significant historical landmarks related to the route of the
Holy Family in Egypt was conducted.
Efforts Taken to Introduce
Religious Tourism
• Holy Family Route, have been launched on October
21st, 2014.
• A new brochure describing the route taken by the Holy
Family has been published by the Ministry of Tourism,
with the approval of the Coptic Orthodox Church, and
it has already been translated into several languages.
• The proposed trip, which will take from 5-7 days, will
follow the path where the Holy Family reportedly
traveled to.
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Efforts Taken to Introduce
Religious Tourism
• Training sessions will be hold for priests in churches
and monasteries as part of the program to prepare
them for tourists.
• The ministry will coordinate with the Egyptian
General Tourist Guide Syndicate to update the
information and references related to the Christian
shrines that the Holy Family visited.
Thank You