Visa and Lonely Planet team up to support Egyptian tourism

Lonely Planet and Visa have joined forces to create a travel microsite packed with expert information on destinations and the best way to access money abroad. Travelers thinking about planning their trip can now access essential information through one comprehensive resource which combines Lonely Planet and Visa’s specialist knowledge.

Travelers can access the specially designed microsite at www.visa.com/lonelyplanet where they will find expert destination advice and information on how to access their cash in 12 destinations around the world: Australia, China, Croatia, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, the UAE and Ukraine.

The site is packed with essential travel services including an ATM locator, suggested trip itineraries and a calendar of events for each destination. Visitors to the site will also be able to ‘Ask the Expert’ questions regarding their trip and receive individual tailored responses from Lonely Planet.

It is envisioned that Visa’s joint initiative with Lonely Planet will help support Egypt’s tourism industry as well as the economy as a whole. In 2010, around 12.7 million tourists visited Egypt, spending EGP 57.9 billion, which constituted for over 11% of the country’s GDP last year.

“At Visa, we’re continually seeking opportunities to provide our cardholders with value-added benefits beyond the convenience, security and global acceptance that they’ve come to rely on,” said Tarek Elhousseiny, Visa’s General Manager for North and West Africa. “By working together with Lonely Planet, Visa has launched yet another initiative to help support tourism in Egypt which will benefit all stakeholders: local merchants and banks, those in the tourism industry as well as Visa cardholders. We look forward to exploring new ways to support tourism in Egypt and provide Visa cardholders with great benefits along the way.”