Get ready for the Africa Travel Association’s Destination Egypt Road Show in the United States with stops in Chicago, Atlanta, and Los Angeles. The tourism promotion event will showcase Egypt as a top African destination and host of ATA’s 34th Annual Congress, to be held in Cairo from May 17-21. “I am honored to work with ATA to bring travel and tourism experts and enthusiasts across the US to Egypt,” said Egyptian Tourist Authority director ElSayed M. Khalifa. “Egypt is home to the world’s most ancient and modern sites, attracting travelers and tourists from around the world since the beginning of time. Egypt continues to be one of Africa’s top travel draws, and I look forward to inviting the US travel market to experience the eye-opening country.”

In each city - Chicago, Atlanta, and Los Angeles - an evening cocktail reception for travel specialists interested in tourism to the African continent, and specifically the Northern African destination Egypt, will be held. Brief presentations of Egypt’s diverse travel products and ATA’s annual hallmark event will be given at the networking event.

Egypt Air, the country’s flag carrier airline and the official congress carrier, will raffle one round-trip ticket from New York to Egypt at each event to be used for the congress. “ATA has longstanding ties with Egypt. We held our 8th Congress in Cairo in May 1983 and our 16th in 1991,” said ATA executive director Edward Bergman. “We hope the 2009 Congress will help Egypt reach its target of 16 million tourism arrivals by 2014, with an increase of arrivals from the US and Africa.”

Partnering with the ATA Chicago Chapter, Adventures in Travel Expo Chicago and the American Society of Travel Agents-Midwest Chapter, ATA will organize the first reception in Chicago on January 9, from 6:00-8:00 pm at Petterino’s restaurant, located at 150 North Dearborn. To RSVP, email Ebayley@africatravelassociation.org.

The Atlanta event, co-hosted by the ATA-Atlanta Chapter and the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA)-Southeast Chapter, will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, located at the Atlanta Perimeter at Ravinia at 4355 Ashford Dunwoody Road on January 26 from 6:00-8:00 pm, following the Atlanta Travel Expo Show. The final stop on the Road Show will be Los Angeles on February 16. Co-hosted by SoCal-ATA, the Southern California ATA chapter, the dinner event will be held at the Marriott Hotel at 6336 Bristol Parkway in Culver City.