Hotel hotline to help Egypt’s tourism
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Egypt’s ministry of tourism has established a telephone hotline to allow foreign tourists to complain about price discrimination at hotels.
The ministry launched the call-in service on July 15 in response to complaints from Gulf Arab visitors, some of whom say they have been quoted higher rates because of their perceived wealth. But while the ministry hopes that the new hotline will mollify some of Egypt’s most valuable visitors, officials connected to Egypt’s hospitality industry said the new hotline is unlikely to receive many answerable complaints.
Because room costs at any hotel fluctuate dramatically depending on the type of room, the time of the booking and whether the room has been reserved individually or as part of a group, the perception that one has been cheated by a hotel is often just that, a perception, said Hala El Khatib, the secretary general of the Egyptian Hotel Association, a private organisation that will help investigate complaints.
Hotels throughout Egypt are now obliged to display the hotline – which can be reached here on 19654 – at their concierge desks. The call centre, which is open to hotel guests every day from 9am to 9pm, employs a staff of eight people who work in twice daily shifts, Ms Husseini said.
In the two weeks since it began operating, the hotline has received one complaint.
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