Egypt protests curb travel to Cairo

By Sanskrity Sinha | January 29 2011 3:12 AM

The United States, UK, Australia, The Netherlands and Sweden have advised against all non-essential travel to Cairo and in other cities of Egypt since thousands of protestors demanding the end of about 30 years of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak's rule put the country in the throes of political unrest.

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Though sites off Cairo including Pyramids of Giza and the Great Sphinx remain safe, travel operators continue to monitor the situation.

According to media reports, protests and violence have spread to popular tourist spots including the Suez and Alexandria. Avoiding Alexandria, many cruises have diverted ships. One of Britain’s leading tour operators, Thomas Cook, has canceled excursions to Cairo, the company said in a statement.

However, according to Thomas Cook, there are still some unaffected, popular tourist areas by the Red Sea where visitors can holiday.

Our experienced teams on the ground assure us that no tourist areas at the Red Sea have been affected in any way by the recent demonstrations. They are fully operational and holidaymakers are continuing to enjoy the popular resorts of Sharm el Sheikh and Hurghada, the company said.

Among airlines shutting off services to Cairo is Delta Air Lines that canceled its Friday night flight from New York to Cairo, the Associated Press reported.