From Struggling Town To Luxury Resort

"Jobs have become hard to find, and many younger people are leaving the area. But now the village may have found a solution."

"Samih Sawiris, the billionaire owner of Egypt's Orascom hotel chain, has bought up the land vacated by the army, and has announced plans to build five top-class hotels, and several hundred luxury villas and apartments. The resort will also boast an 18-hole golf course and a tropical spa and swimming pool facility."

"Andermatt's residents were at first somewhat bemused by the scale of the plans; the resort will double the size of their village."

"The new hotels are expected to bring an extra 2,000 jobs to Andermatt, while the population of the village at the moment is only 1,600."

"But after numerous town hall meetings, which were addressed by Samih Sawiris in person, most people have come to see the proposal as a form of salvation."

"'I think we can see a secure future now,' said a resident after leaving one of the meetings. 'This will stop Andermatt becoming a forgotten little alpine village.'"