The museum opened to the public on Tuesday (4 November) after three days of VIP visits from 39 world leaders, 10 prime ministers and 16 delegations, which began on Saturday (1 November).
GEM is packed with 100,000 artefacts covering some seven millennia of the country's history from pre-dynastic times to the Greek and Roman eras. Egypt hopes GEM will attract upwards of eight million visitors each year.
Highlights include the entire contents of the intact tomb of the boy king Tutankhamun, which is going on display for the first time since it was found by British Egyptologist Howard Carter in 1922.
Speaking at WTM London on Wednesday (5 November), Sherif Fathy, Egypt's minister for tourism and antiquities, used the opening to urge countries in possession of Egyptian artefacts to return them.
"We've always been asking for them back," he told TTG. "This argument that we did not have the right protection for them is now redundant. We will never stop claiming these artefacts.
"There's an ethical argument too. If I'm holding onto something that is yours, I should give it back."
Three days of treasures
Fathy confirmed 18,000 people – 11,000 of whom were from countries outside Egypt – visited the GEM on Tuesday, the first day it was open to the public.
"We're extremely happy," Fathy said. "The GEM is a destination on its own. It will certainly increase the number of visitors to Egypt. It could be a day trip for some tourists coming from other parts of Egypt."
Fathy believes it will increase the average length of visitor's stay in Egypt by "at least a day". However, he added: "The issue around GEM is being able to control the length of the visit.
"The online booking system will shut down when we reach a certain capacity. We want people to enjoy the visits. We can accommodate more than 22,000 people a day.
"If you want to look at all the artefacts at GEM, it will take you three days. Obviously, there are some tourists that will just need a day."
