Anyone been to egypt?

Ems!

We went to Egypt 2 years ago and would class it as our 2nd best hol ever!(behind our honeymoon!), would go back in a flash! we stayed in sharm el sheikh and went to cairo to see pyramids/sphinx etc, which i would defo recommend - we did it as a day trip which was tiring but vv cheap - booked with local travel agent, not your tour operator( the local agents DO have insurance, though your tour operator will try to tell u they don't so you will buy their own trip for 3x the price!)
We found that everything was really cheap - one thing you definately have to haggle on though is taxis - try to find out the "right" price from someone at your hotel b4 u get a taxi, then set the price before you set off, they will prob try to charge u 2 or 3 x more than they should be they are just chancing their luck! Drinks in bars in sharm i found reasonable - perhaps £1.30/pint? not really sure!! Oh and we were all inclusive too - apart from our trip to cairo and the duty free we spent about £70! - this was just on 2-3 nights out and a few drinks/snacks wen were out and about. suppose it depends how much u want to go out though and the quality/variety of food at the hotel!

bcl999

I have been twice to Hurghada. Do you know where you will be staying? The town is really spread out but you can catch mini-buses the locals use whcih go back and forward. I think the fare is £2(Egyptian) for us, cheaper for the locals. When I was last there the exchange rate was about 10 Egyptian pounds to 1 pound sterling. The Egyptian pound comprises 100 piastres.

Things are pretty cheap with the exception of alcohol. Baksheesh (tipping) is a way of life but don't compare it to UK tips e.g one egyptian pound is plenty for a doorman (even 50 piastres might be enough), so obtain plenty of small denomination notes.

As far as taxis are concerned (especially if in Cairo), the best way is find out beforehand from your hotel how much the fare is. The hotel will tell you the price foreigners pay, once again the locals pay less. You can be fairly sure the hotel is quoting a generous (i.e. generous to the cabbie) price. When you reach the destination, give over that amount as you are leaving the cab or even after you are out of it. Try to have the exact amount, that way you avoid an argument with the driver. Cairenes don't ask the cabbie what the fare is, they just give over what is the generally recognised fare for the ride. Your driver may get the hump because he thought you were another unwitting tourist with more money than sense but he is still being fairly paid, you are just avoiding being ripped off.

The thing to remember in Egypt is that almost everything has a price for locals and another for tourists. This is not an offical thing (except for hotels which do publish different prices for Egyptians and non-residents), you won't find 2 price tags or anything. I personally don't think it's fair for us to try to get everything at the Egyptian price but at the same time I don't want to get ripped off.

Your tour rep will no doubt tell you about all the trips on offer. Most of these can be organised independently, depending how adventurous you are feeling and how well you can stand up to hassle from touts. For example, Cairo, Suez, Luxor and Aswan are all accessible by bus. (No train service at Hurghada). Suez could likely be a day trip but the others are longer. To see the Pyramids you need to go to Cairo, to see the tombs and temples, you need to go in the other direction to Luxor.

The weather is likely to be very hot when you are there. I have been elsewhere on the Red Sea in May and in October and both times found it uncomfortably hot. February/March and November/December are my favourite times to visit.

Please post any other questions you have and i'll try to answer.

emma_b_4

we are staying at the Primasol Albatros Beach Resort.
http://www.otbeach.com/hotel/00392.html
going on the 7th July. i will post more later got to pick up OH from work! Thankyou for replies they have been v useful! im counting down the weeks!!

tidyfinance

Hi emma_b,
My wife and I and the 2 kids (9 and 11) went last year and stayed in the grand azure in sharm. Excellent! Only went for the week to chill so didn't see the pyramids etc. Advice to anyone not thinking of going outside of the sinai peninsular (ie not going to the pyramids etc), you DO NOT NEED A VISA!!
When handed the cards on the plane, just write on the back SINAI ONLY.
Once in sharm airport, everyone is guided to the left. That great big queue is for visas. If you are staying in sinai just turn right and go through passport check. The guy will look at your card and wave you through. That'll save you £20 odd each family member.
The cabin crew on the aircraft were not aware of this on our visit, so don't expect them to confirm. I was ready for a kick off with the guy if he insisted I needed a visa as I was 100% that I didn't! But we had no problems. Actually we've just been looking this week to go back. Dubai is getting too expensive now (favourite place) - still looking though.
You'll have a great time honestly. Just drink plenty of water and take tummy upset stuff with you as it's expensive over there. There aren't many who escape the tummy upsets, some say its the sea, but I think the change in temperature has a really big effect on our systems.

Enjoy it anyway, I/we were all fine.

emma_b_4

hi thankyou!
I have read it will be in the forties in July....hot!!!! got a brochure for egypt yesterday our hotel isnt in there but we read up on the trips etc. think we are going to do the valley of the kings. im really excited to go but our fmaily our more majorca every yr type holiday makers so they have tried to put us off egypt bigstyle "the food is awful" "you will get ripped off everywhere you go" "the water is different over there" etc. however there seems to be so many ppl that have gone and really enjoyed it so that makes us feel happier! the reviews for our hotel have been mixed from what i have read but i look at them with an open mind bcos everybodys tastes are different. and unhappy ppl are twice as likely to write a review i think!
so just got the saving up for the hol to do now!

anyone know of any good travel insurance deals? i have sorted the parking. we are flying with excel airlines, can you ask for extra leg room on these flights?

thankyou very much!

GibsonSt19

My wife and I went to Sharm-el-Sheik last May and loved it. The weather was blistering but as long as you're sensible you'll be fine.

I would absolutely recommend visiting the Pyramids in Giza (and if you get the chance to fly to Cairo, instead of bussing it, then I'd sugest you do that. Seeing Cairo from the air is an eye opening sight - SO urban - It's estimated that it accomodates 17 million people!).

Make sure you take a good camera, as some of the sights are beautiful and deserve to be captured.

If you're up for a little challenge, walking up Mt. Sinai is awesome. You begin the ascent at about 2am, after travelling for a few hours through the desert, and it gets REALLY cold, especially when you've reached the top. Make sure you're feeling well enough to do it, as I'd had 'Egyptian tummy' a couple of days before going and I'd starved myself to starve the bug. On the way up Sinai I felt soooo rough... faint, shakey etc. Took a camel when I couldn't stand any more (but then realised we were very close to the top, doh!). The view at the top is magnificent.

At the base of Sinai, you can tour St Katherine's Monastery, see the supposed ancestor of the burning bush, and see where the Golden Calf was worshipped. All very interesting.

If you get to visit Old Sharm, head over to the Sinai Star resteraunt. It serves the BEST fish dishes I've ever tasted... and very cheap too (it will likely be packed in there).

If you're used to more civilised holidays in Spain and Greece, the culture change may be somewhat of a shock... but just embrace it and have a great time.

I found service to be excellent, and prices to be sensible.

If you have a pang for UK type food, try KFC... tastes a little different, but very nice and so very cheap.

If you go to see the pyramids, I'd also recommend you visit the Cairo museum, and King Tut's mask... it's a beautiful artifact of history.

Taxi's are fun (and you'll realise that the drivers are actually very skilled). Don't be afraid to walk away from one taxi if you feel you're being 'taken for a ride', as another will be beeping you within seconds.

Hope some of that helps, feel free to PM me about anything specific you think about.

kenshaz

insureandgo see Martins article on travel insurance be prepared for poverty and people who smile and are happy,watch the caleche drivers,haggle with them,try the restaurant in the old palace hotel in Luxor,go on a nile cruise brilliant,use the hotels for respite from the heat .ie air conditioning,when you are walking around,do not let the caleche drivers take you to the papras factories,or spice shops.Wonderful,needs doing,

discodiva_2

harrygr8 wrote:

Be very careful!
very dangerous place - rude !!!!!!s too & the service is abysmal

NOT A FAN!

Totally agree.I worked on cruise ships for 8 years and always dreaded the Egypt stint.
Horrible dirty nasty smelly place.
As are the residents pester you , rip you off, rude I could go on and on.

The pyramids is an uncomfortable trip aswell.Hardly any of the coaches have air con and it's sweltering and jam packed.

emma_b_4

i suppose when we are used to our way of live some people do find places like egypt a culture shock. i on the other hand enjoy experiencing another way of life.
thankyou for the comments though i will bare them in mind!

jan59

Egypt is wonderful. Funnily enough they have their own culture and it IS different to the West - but that's the interesting bit!

If you get hassled, the arabic for no thank you is 'La shukran'. If you put your hand on your heart as you say it, it gives extra 'umph' to what you are saying and more often than not has the desired effect. For balance, yes is 'aiwa' - (eye-wah)

Two beers is 'ithneen beerer'. I know its not the right spelling, but doing phonetic stuff here, so you get the pronuniciation about right!! I find if you can ask for two beers in the language of the country that you are in, you are doing ok (even if it is a muslim country, the Egyptians are very tolerant about alcohol - and they like to make some money!!


Have a ball - we found that the best view of the Pyramids at Giza is from Pizza Hut (yes, really). Go up to the first floor and watch the light show at night!! Really good!

Have a lovely time!!