holiday to Eygpt - do I need any jabs?

saraiain

Hi all,

Just had my bro on the phone who is coming with us to Eygpt in 4 weeks (staying in taba), he said I may need some jabs. Never even gave it a thought.

Can anyone tell me which I may need?

Many thanks

Sara

zzzLazyDaisy

From netdoctor:


Egypt
Region: Africa

Vaccine recommendations

Disease Recommendation When to see a doctor
Typhoid Vaccination recommended 10 days before travel

Hepatitis A Vaccination recommended 2 weeks before travel

Diphtheria Vaccination recommended 3 months before travel

Tuberculosis *Vaccination sometimes recommended 3 months before travel

Hepatitis B *Vaccination sometimes recommended 2 months before travel

Rabies *Vaccination sometimes recommended 1 month before travel

Meningococcal meningitis Not required
.
Yellow fever Certificate of vaccination may be required 10 days before travel

Japanese B encephalitis Not required
.
Tick-borne encephalitis Not required

zzzLazyDaisy

It depends what part of Egypt you are going to, and what injections you have already had. Taba is quite an isolated area on the Red Sea, and there's little risk of the more colourful diseases!

Best thing to do is to see your GP, who will know the up-to-date requirements.

If you're looking for a chill-out holiday with nothing to do but relax, you'll love Taba, have a great holiday!

trigger_mike

im of to taba in june and was told i need some tabs by the doctor

black-saturn

I was told it was advisable to have them but not compulsary.

saraiain

I'll give the doctor a call tomorrow - thanks for the replies. Cant believe I didnt even think about jabs........ I'm such a dough head!!

Thanks for the advice lazydaisy, have never been to eygpt before, only off for a week as a surprise 60th for my mum. Really excited, but definitely dont plan on moving far from my sunlounger for the week. May give snorkelling a go if I'm feeling energetic one day! )

zzzLazyDaisy

Sara, which hotel are you staying at? I stayed all inclusive at the Radisson three years ago. It was great. Absolutely nothing to do but sunbathe! There are some trips, but Taba is so far away from anywhere that the journey times were too much for me.

If you like snorkelling there is a trip to a local island that is supposed to be good. But to be honest, the snorkelling around the coastline is pretty good. I saw a HUGE turtle! Magic :j :j

saraiain

We are staying at the Radisson too!!!!

Have scoured the web looking at reviews and piccies, looks lovely. Cant wait to go. Quick question...... I have been reading about visas being needed, is this the case everywhere in Eygpt?

zzzLazyDaisy

When I was there you didn't need a visa if you were a UK passport holder flying into Taba airport. Some people flew into Israel (forget the name of the airport - Ovda?) and they needed a visa, but just got it at customs control. But if you decide to leave the general area (eg to go on a trip to Cairo or the Dead Sea) you will need to get a visa then, but it is simple enough to do while you are out there.

One thing, I suggest you take about £50 and channge it into small Egyptian money for tips - the hotel has a bank. The staff are really low paid, bar staff and waiters earn about £30 a month and most sent it home to their families. A small tip for good service as you go along is really appreciated, and will get you that bit extra service. Also the young man who cleans the room is paid absolute peanuts, but they do a fantastic job. We tipped ours £20 at the end of the week, he deserved it for looking after us so well. He had tears in his eyes when we gave him it, later we discovered that was equivalent to a months money for him.

Oh and please remember to put the 'make up my room' sign on the door. They cannot leave until they have done every room - no matter what time it is, and they do not go into the room unless the sign is on the door.

You are going to have such a great time. I am dead jealous!

saraiain

I am sooo excited now!! I'm hoping that we can get away without having to pay for a visa. We are only going to be staying at the hotel and are flying into taba. We are being collected by our driver before we hit passport control so hopefully he/she will point us in the right direction.

I will definitely give tips, it was a similar situation when we went to the dominican republic for our honeymoon. there is such a rich/poor divide. we gave our maid some crayons for her children and she was thrilled.

Thanks for all of the advice and I'll let you know how the holiday goes.

Thanks again

Sara

zzzLazyDaisy

Sara, just had another thought...

You might want to get a bottle of Bailey's (or whatever is your fave tipple) at duty free and put it in the fridge in your room. The all-inc only includes local booze. The red wine is drinkable, but they only serve that in the restaurant, not the bars. Most of the local stuff tastes like petrol!!

It didn't matter to us, we used to linger over the meal chatting and drinking wine, there are tables outside and it is a very pleasant way to spend the evening. But an occasional stronger drink would have been nice. Also keep an eye on the cut-off time for all-inc (I think it was about 11pm) there's no warning - one minute its free, the next you're paying.

Some other tips: ask at any bar, and at the fruit juice counter at breakfast, and they will give you large bottles of water straight from the fridge. The milk shakes at the pool bar are lovely and very fattening! And the icecreams at the cafe by the pool are also yummy!!