Cross-Cultural Blog

Hi Mohamed, Fady, Abdullah, and Sarah,

You share a powerful story about the Egyptian-German man in Hurghada.

Powerful point about the serious negative consequences of tourism.

When I was in Egypt last December, I saw a similar thing - young boys being arrested by the police for taking a photo with female western tourists.

What do you think would help turn things around?

There is a similar discrimination against Mexican immigrants here in the US, especially in Half Moon Bay, CA, where I live. However, this is not tourism, but immigration and ethnocentrism.

Alyssa
(Instructor at Stanford University

Wow, this is a really interesting anecdote. Is this all unspoken discrimination, or have you heard of written laws or regulations that favor the tourist?

I've seen a similar thing in Thailand (my home country), though not from the government side but from hotel owner. This one time my dad called an international-tourist-oriented hotel to book a room (using Thai language) and they said it was all booked. I called them back, this time talking in English, asking for a same type of room during the same period. Guess what, I got a room immediately. In a way it was funny, but at the same time I was upset with the hotel for treating us badly just because we are natives of the country.

This is so interesting...I went on a trip to Europe last summer, touring all over the continent, and what you all are talking about totally applies. I felt like we were getting special treatment (especially in Barcelona) and in some ways it was unsettling. Obviously we were tourists in a foreign country, but it just didn't seem right to receive better treatment than the locals.

That story is really fascinating. I wonder to what extent similar problems arise in other countries that depend heavily on tourism. Also, I wonder if the different treatment to tourists and citizens is because government officials are told to do so, or because these officials actually feel differently towards citizens and tourists.

Hi!
I entirely agree with your argument that treating tourists well does not imply mistreating locals. It seems to me that, unfortunately, the effort to produce an image of a receptive country where tourists are treated really well leads the local government to excessively focus on tourists well-being and therefore forget that its main purpose is the well-being of Egyptian people. It's definitely something to keep in mind!

WOW! I could not agree with you more...
I'm from Tanzania... and this happens all the time! I really feel you.
Our African governments need to change. They really do treat tourists like king and queens and cause of it, locals have a negative view of tourism in their country. While this should not be the case.
I felt that you made a very strong and moving point.
I totally agree with you.

I think you have made a really valid and interesting point. Too often when discussing tourist locales and even the tourism industry we focus simply on how tourists are treated, typically focusing on whether the tourist experience is a good one and perhaps glossing over how tourists are being immersed in a less authentic experience in which they are elevated to a status superior to that of the local community. This is undoubtedly a problem. My question would be how can this be changed in places like Egypt, or in Thailand and Tanzania if it can be changed at all? Surely governments and tourist sectors would be reluctant to change their ways, so how could they be incentivized to do so?

I believe it's not about being a tourist instead it's about coming from a country that respects its citizens. Americans and Europeans are generally respected by their governments unlike in Egypt, so when foreigners come to Egypt it's felt that they should be respected more than others.Sometimes their lives are valued more than the lives of Egyptians.

A couple of years ago an Egyptian mother and her three children made an accident on a highway. She called the ambulance asking for immediate help because her eldest daughter was seriously injured. when she called they asked whether she had any foreigners with her or not. Her answer was no. she waited for a long time and they didn't show up. She then remembered that two of her children have the French nationality so she called and told them her children are french. And guess what, they came in no time. Unfortunately, they were too late because the girl had died. It's very sad. However at the end we are the ones who should make our government respect us.

Thank you all for commenting on our topic. I’m really glad that you shared with us some stories of your own. All that you've mentioned stress our point about the special treatment and as most of you said it won't be easy for the government and the tourism sector to react until we, the people, do something about. That’s why I think that we should start reaching out to the government through elevating the issue to the public opinion. In that way we will hopefully grab the government's attention. We have a responsibility to deliver the message to the government.

We should use the media and the law to demonstrate our rights in having equal treatment. Our government should realize that if this policy of special treatment proceeds, it would be turned into a negative thing. The local Egyptians will start to hate those tourists, who receive a better treatment by the government and the officials, consequently the tourism sector can be harmed by following this policy more than being benefited.