Egypt has been marred by terrorism, but tourists should not give up on this resilient country

On New Year’s Day 2011, I woke up in a hotel on one of the islands that are scattered across the Nile in Aswan. Ancient structures, fashioned thousands of years ago, decorate this fine city – and, just five years ago, attracted visitors in their thousands.

While whispers of an “Arab Spring” took hold in Tunisia, to the east, Egypt was shining bright as a tourist destination. The murderous attacks on historic sites and resorts had been quelled, and foreign visitors were flocking in.

British Airways was laying on long-haul Boeings to ferry upmarket holidaymakers to Sharm el-Sheikh and the UK’s biggest holiday firm, Thomson, had just started flying non-stop to Aswan – which is how I had arrived. The river cruise business was thriving, with boats jostling for prime position on the voyage to Luxor. At the Egyptair office, tourists scrambled for seats on flights to the recreated city of Abu Simbel – rescued before the Aswan Dam submerged millennia of history. And as visitors enjoyed the best of times, so did the locals: market traders, taxi drivers, tourist guides worked flat out and made a decent living.

Even before today’s tragic loss of MS804, Egypt was facing the worst of times. At dawn on 31 October last year, 224 people lost their lives aboard a Metrojet flight from Sharm el-Sheikh to St Petersburg. Investigators believe a bomb was placed on board at the Egyptian airport. An air lift was organised; the British flew out and the airport serving the nation’s most important resort remains out of bounds. Hotels, restaurants and bars in the engaging Egyptian version of Las Vegas were virtually empty during the winter. The government in Cairo has thrown tens of millions of dollars at trying to bolster safety. But while investigators search for clues about the loss of MS804 and 66 more lives, moves towards lifting the flight ban are likely to be put on hold.

In normal circumstances, the hijack of a domestic flight to Cyprus earlier this year by a man sporting a home-made “suicide vest” – and willing to pose for photos – would have proved a comic interlude. But there is worldwide hypersensitivity about anything to do with tourism in Egypt. All of which makes this a very good time to visit the nation with the greatest concentration of antiquity in the world.

Not only can you savour the spine-tingling thrill of exploring the Great Pyramid of Giza and the Valley of the Kings without the crowds – you can feel virtuous while having the time of your life. No-show tourists, shunning the wonders of the Egyptian Museum and the dive culture of Dahab, are missing out on the chance to enrich themselves and the people.

The only possible response to the tragedy of tourism in Egypt, and the men of violence who fuelled the destruction of livelihoods by the millions, is to return in greater numbers.