by Ahmed Shafiq

HURGHADA, Egypt, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- Business owners in Egypt's Red Sea resort town of El Gouna have witnessed a notable increase in tourist turnout since the foundation of the annual El Gouna Film Festival (GFF) in 2017.

"Since the first edition of the GFF in 2017, El Gouna has become a favorable destination for tourists from all corners of the world," Ali Adel, a waiter in a restaurant at the resort town told Xinhua, adding that "El Gouna has won more fame thanks to the film festival."

The third edition of the nine-day GFF kicked off on Sept. 19 in El Gouna resort, hosting hundreds of film celebrities and filmmakers. It will screen over 80 movies from various countries, including China.

"When famous cinema stars come to El Gouna for the festival, people in their countries would certainly ask what El Gouna looks like and they go google the resort," Adel said, "Consequently they would find out how incredible the town is."

The young man added that business owners in the resort wait for the festival impatiently because September has become a "hot season" for them as thousands of Egyptian and non-Egyptian tourists flock to the town.

"We wait for the festival like a cat on hot bricks because thousands of people visit the El Gouna during the nine-day festival," Adel said, while a group of German tourists were getting into his restaurant.

He noted that the festival is an important cultural and artistic event for people working in the film industry. However, he said, it might be more important for people working in the tourism sector in the town.

"Like most of Egypt's tourist attractions, El Gouna suffered from an acute tourist decline over the past eight years, but the film festival has breathed life into the town," Adel noted.

The number of tourists to Egypt declined from 14.7 million in 2010 to about 9 million in 2018 due to political instability and relevant security challenges, including two mass uprisings that toppled two presidents, forcing several countries to ban their citizens from traveling to Egypt for safety reasons.

Tourism in Egypt was further delivered a heavy blow following the Russian airplane crash in North Sinai in October 2015, after which Russia suspended its direct flights to the country and some other nations including Britain suspended flights to Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh.

However, the sector has witnessed a boom after many countries resumed direct flights to Cairo.

El Gouna is a favorable attraction to foreign and Egyptian tourists for its clean air and sunny sandy beaches. The town, founded by the billionaire Samih Sawiris more than two decades ago, is located just north of Hurghada on the west coast of the Red Sea.

The town is easily accessed from Europe via the nearby Hurghada International Airport and boasts superb infrastructure and excellent services as well as natural beaches and year-round sunshine.

Sawiris, also cofounder of the GFF, believes that the festival has promoted tourism in his tourist town that has always been an example of modernity and beauty.

"It is incredible how much the GFF has helped us market this destination," Sawiris told Xinhua.

The business tycoon said the film festival has made many people around the world learn about El Gouna, "probably more than any advertisements" he has done.