HISTORICAL STAGES OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN EGYPT

Abstract

The article explored Egypt as one of the leading tourist destinations in the modern world. The necessity of research and analysis of the main stages of tourism formation in Egypt was studied and substantiated. The characteristic features of the state formation of Egypt were considered. It was proved how the history of statehood in Egypt influenced the peculiarities of the origin and evolution of tourism in it. The main works of domestic and foreign scientists on the analysis of tourism development and the formation of the tourism industry in the country were studied. Scientific methods were explained, the application of which allowed comprehensively to study and analyze the historical stages of tourism formation in the country. Based on the results of the study, the article proposed to identify 3 main stages of historical development of tourism in Egypt, namely: 1) the initial (IV c. BC-early XX c.), characterized by the appearance of the first trips to and from Egypt on the basis of trade, cognitive, educational and military motive; increasing of the cultural and cognitive potential of the state; the construction of famous cultural and historical monuments of the state; 2) the emergence and evolution of organized tourism (early XX c. – end of XX c.), characterized by the organization of the first tourist trips; laying the foundations for the development of the tourism industry; the emergence of mass tourism; increasing of the tourist potential of the state; 3) modern (early XXI c. – present times) - the active development of Egypt as one of the most famous tourist centers of the African tourist region. In the article, the main characteristics of each of the studied stages were revealed. The expediency of their allocation in such time frames, which were presented in the article, was substantiated. The main types of travel into and from Egypt until the beginning of the XXI century were analyzed, as well as the main types of tourism presented in the country at the present stage were studied. The article examines the political, legal, socio-economic and cultural factors of tourism development in the country at each of the proposed historical stages. The main characteristics of tourism development in Egypt at the present stage were considered and the main prospects of further research on the selected scientific topic were substantiated.