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Egypt Travel Guide

The latest travel Information on Egypt, includes ideas on Things to See and Do, Local Events, Consulate & Embassy Contact Addresses and much more, all from a first-time visitors point of view.

Egypt Information

Overview

Travellers have marvelled at Egypt’s archaeological wonders for centuries, ever since the Ancient Greeks visited the pyramids. Today, millions of tourists are attracted each year to the pyramids, temples, mosques and great monuments of the Nile Valley, as well as the stunning diving resorts of the Red Sea.

In 430 BC, when Greek historian Herodotos visited the magnificent monuments in Egypt, many of them were already 2,500 years old. Most, from the pyramids of Giza to the astonishingly beautiful temples of Karnak or Philae, or the painted tombs in the Valley of the Kings, can still be visited today. The sheer age of this great civilisation is mind-blowing.

The life-giving Nile runs north through the country to the Mediterranean, feeding an emerald ribbon of irrigated fields adjacent to villages shaded by date palms. Whether on a cruise ship or traditional felucca boat, life on the water is a constant visual feast, while the few huge, dusty cities - Cairo, Alexandria, Aswan and Luxor - are a babble of exotic sounds and smells.

Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheik, on the Red Sea coast, are doors to a magical underwater world of technicolour fish and coral that draws divers from around the world, while other adventurous travellers head inland. Here, you can discover monasteries amid the arid mountains of Sinai or the distant desert oases, home to the hardy nomads whose camel trains still wander the Saharan sands.

Egypt is at the centre of the Arab world and has played a central role in the region’s political situation in modern times. After three wars in 1948, 1967 and 1973, peace was achieved with Israel in 1979 leading to Egypt’s expulsion from the Arab League (they were restored in 1991). Egypt has since played a vital role in the Middle East Peace Process.

Author

Melissa Shales

Top Things To See

Delve into atmospheric medieval Cairo. Landmarks include Midan Hussein square with its tea houses and imposing Mosque of Sayyidna Al-Hussein, the Al-Azhar Mosque with the world’s oldest university, the Museum of Islamic Art and the stunning Citadel medieval fortress.

Spend time at one of the country’s greatest attractions, the Egyptian Museum (website: www.egyptianmuseum.gov.eg), housing over 130,000 exhibits, including Pharaonic and Byzantine art and sculpture, the Mummy Room and the celebrated Tutankhamun exhibition.

Gaze in awe at the Great Pyramids of Giza, Egypt’s most visited monuments. Of the three main pyramids (Cheops, Chephren and Mycerinus), the largest is 137m (449ft) high and contains some 3 million blocks of stone. Explore the interiors via labyrinthine tunnels and staircases.

Puzzle over the bewitching Sphinx, as named by the ancient Greeks, with the head of a woman and body of a lion. In the evening there are extravagant sound-and-light shows at the Sphinx and pyramids telling the story of ancient Egypt. Camels, horses and donkeys can be hired to explore the site.

See the remains of the Old Kingdom’s capital Memphis, south of present-day Cairo; Saqqara was its necropolis and its Step Pyramid is older than those at Giza, with well-preserved wall reliefs and royal tombs. Dahshur has only been open to foreigners since 1996, and is famous for its Bent Pyramid and a huge field of royal tombs.

Explore Luxor, once the ancient city of Thebes. The spectacular Karnak Temple features colossal statues, reliefs, obelisks and halls with nightly sound-and-light shows. Luxor Temple is guarded by a huge Ramses II statue. Other highlights include Luxor Museum, filled by relics from the Theban Temples and Necropolis, and the more macabre Mummification Museum.

Cross to the West Bank of the Nile and witness the vast Theban Necropolis, containing some of the world’s finest tombs: the Valley of the Kings; Valley of the Queens; and Tombs of the Nobles. Highlights include the tombs of Tutankhamun, Ramses II and Nefertari, reputed to be the country’s finest.

Take a river taxi to Elephantine Island from Aswan. Recent excavations of this former frontier town have revealed temples and a fortress. The island’s Aswan Museum contains exhibits found in Nubia and Aswan. Just south is the Island of Plants, presented in the 1890s to Lord Horatio Kitchener. He created a beautiful botanical garden from exotic imports from India and Malaysia.

Wonder at the sheer size of the Aswan Dam, which powers and irrigates the whole of Egypt. Near Aswan is the Temple of Philae, on the Island of Philae. UNESCO moved it stone by stone to save it from the dam’s waters.

Wonder at Abu Simbel‘s magnificent Sun Temple of Ramses II, which was also rescued from flooding by UNESCO.

Visit Kom Ombo (’city of gold’), 30km (18 miles) north of Aswan. It is a largely Nubian settlement, known for its Temple of Haroeris and Sobek. Another common stop on boat trips to and from Luxor is Edfu, also famed for the largest and best-preserved Pharaonic Temple in Egypt, the Temple of Horus.

In Alexandria, Egypt’s second city, see historic relics in the Graeco-Roman Museum and visit the Roman Amphitheatre. Other places of interest include: 15th-century Fort Quait Bey built on the foundations of the long-gone Pharos Lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

Pay your respects at El Alamein, a small coastal village 100km (60 miles) west of Alexandria and an easy day trip. Famous as the scene of a decisive Allied victory, which determined the fate of Egypt and Britain’s Empire, there is a War Museum, Cemetery and Memorial.

A great example of modern engineering, the Suez Canal links the Red Sea with the Mediterranean. Completed in 1869, it has repeatedly been the cause of dispute. Tours run from the city of Port Said and smaller Suez, at the top of the red Sea.

Visit south Cairo’s Coptic Museum (website: www.copticmuseum.gov.eg) to see the world’s greatest collection of Coptic art. The Hanging Church, Monastery of St George and St Sergius and St Barbara churches are all in the same area. The Ben Ezra Synagogue is one of Egypt’s oldest, and represents what remains of the Jewish community.

See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.

Top Things To Do

Try your bargaining skills at Cairo’s famous Khan-el Khalili bazaar, pulsing with commerce and crammed with spices, coppersmiths, perfume and trinkets. Here, Fishawi’s tea house has been in business for over 200 years, and is still a great people-watching venue.

For an even more exotic touch, go to the Camel Market (Souq al-Gamaal), held every morning at Birqash, around 35km (21 miles) from Cairo on the Western Desert fringe. A livestock market is also held every Tuesday morning at El-Hebel, a village 4km (2.4 miles) from Luxor.

Escape to Egypt’s six oases. The largest, Kharga, has a Berber community, temples and museums. Dhakla has hot springs and desert camel rides. The smallest is Farafra, an ancient fort town. Siwa is the furthest west and remote, but the most picturesque and idyllic. Bahariyya is famed for olives and dates. Al-Faiyum has small pyramids and temples nearby.

Go on a Nile cruise, usually between Luxor and Aswan, and generally lasting around five days. Along the Nile, felucca owners tout for custom; from Luxor, hire one for a brief sunset cruise to Banana Island or a trip upriver to Aswan. Hot-air balloon trips offer the best views of Luxor.

Hit the beach at Alexandria, ’The Pearl of the Mediterranean’, which still attracts wealthy Cairenes as a summer retreat, although beaches are crowded in summer. Ma’amoura is a more liberal and Westernised beach, while Agami and Hannoville are cleaner and less crowded. Diving is possible on Montazah beach. West from El Alamein is coastal resort Mersa Matruh.

Explore the Red Sea region, revered for its spectacular diving, beaches, stunning coastline and vast deserts. It has some of the best diving in the world, and its resorts cater to all budgets.

Also in the Red Sea region, venture out into its desert playground, with four-wheel-drive and camel treks to historic St Catherine Monastery and adjacent Mt Sinai. Or if you’re feeling energetic, the mountain is a popular climb to watch the dawn from its peak.

Go diving from Sharm el-Sheikh, the action-packed grand dame resort of the Sinai Peninsula, along with neighbouring Na’ama Bay. They are close to Ras Mohamed National Park (website: www.rasmohamed.com), long-regarded as one of the Red Sea’s finest diving locations for its reefs and drop-offs.

Unwind in Aswan, the gateway to Africa, and steeped in Nubian culture. The corniche provides attractive riverside walks. In the evenings, floating restaurants provide a lively gathering place. The Old Cataract Hotel is famous as the location of the film Death on the Nile.

Fit in a round of golf. While it’s not a sport readily associated with Egypt, the country is now making quite a name for itself and offers almost 20 courses. They range from locations within sight of Cairo’s Pyramids to settings alongside the Red Sea.

See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.

Going Out

Food and Drink

Egyptian cuisine is excellent, combining many of the best traditions of Middle Eastern cooking, and there are both large hotel restaurants and smaller specialist ones throughout the main towns. Some of the larger hotels in Cairo and its environs have kitchens serving top-quality cosmopolitan dishes. In the centre of Cairo, American-style snack bars are also spreading. Restaurants have waiter service. Although Egypt is a Muslim country, alcohol is available in cafe-style bars and good restaurants.

National specialities:
• Foul (bean dishes).
• Stuffed vine leaves.
• Grilled aubergines.
• Kebabs.

National drinks:
• Kahwa (thick, strong coffee).
• Shay bil na’na’ (mint tea).
• Karkaday (clear, bright red drink made from hibiscus flowers).
• Aswanli (dark beer made in Aswan).
• Zibib (alcoholic aniseed-flavoured drink).

Legal drinking age: 21.

Tipping: 10 to 12% is added to hotel and restaurant bills but an extra tip of 5% is normal. Taxi drivers generally expect 10%.

Nightlife

Sophisticated nightclubs, discos, casinos and good restaurants can be found in Cairo, Alexandria and most large towns. The nightlife in Luxor and Aswan often includes barbecues along the Nile.

Shopping

The most interesting shopping area for tourists in Cairo is the old bazaar, Khan-el-Khalili, specialising in reproductions of antiquities. Jewellery, spices, copper utensils and Coptic cloth are some of the many special items. There are also modern shopping centres available, particularly near Tehrir Square. Haggling is expected, and sometimes encouraged, as a way of communication and human contact.

Shopping hours: Winter: Tues, Wed, Fri and Sat 0900-1900, Mon and Thurs 0900-2000. During Ramadan, hours vary, with shops often closing on Sunday. Summer: Tues, Wed, Fri-Sun 0900-1230 and 1600-2000.

Climate

Hot, dry summers with mild, dry winters and cold nights. Rainfall is negligible except on the coast. In April, the hot, dusty Khamsin wind blows from the Sahara.

Required Clothing

Lightweight cottons and linens during summer, with warmer clothes for winter and cooler evenings.

Public Holidays

Below are listed Public Holidays for the January 2008-December 2009 period.

2008
8 Jan Coptic Christmas Day.
10 Jan Islamic New Year.
20 Mar Birth of the Prophet.
25 Apr Sinai Liberation Day (Sinai only).
28 Apr Sham el-Nassim (Coptic Easter).
1 May Labour Day.
23 Jul National Day.
11 Sep Coptic New Year.
6 Oct Armed Forces Day.
1-2 Oct Bairam Feast (End of Ramadan).
8-11 Dec Grand Feast.
29 Dec Islamic New Year.

2009
7 Jan Coptic Christmas Day.
20 Jan Islamic New Year.
9 Mar Birth of the Prophet.
27 Apr tbc* Sham el-Nassim (Coptic Easter).
25 Apr Sinai Liberation Day (Sinai only).
1 May Labour Day.
23 Jul National Day.
11 Sep tbc* Coptic New Year.
20-23 Sep Bairam Feast (End of Ramadan).
6 Oct Armed Forces Day.
27-28 Nov Grand Feast.

Note

(a) * These holidays are not official, although Coptic Christians may observe them. (b) Muslim festivals are timed according to local sightings of various phases of the moon and the dates given above are approximations. During the lunar month of Ramadan that precedes the Bairam Feast, Muslims fast during the day and feast at night and normal business patterns may be interrupted. Some restaurants are closed during the day but most tourist attractions and hotels are not affected. Some disruption may continue into the three-day Grand Feast itself.

Health

Diphtheria

Special Precaution: Yes

Hepatitis A

Special Precaution: Yes

Malaria

Special Precaution: No

Rabies

Special Precaution: Sometimes

Tetanus

Special Precaution: Yes

Typhoid

Special Precaution: Yes

Yellow Fever

Special Precaution: No*

Health Care

Public hospitals are open to tourists. Health insurance is strongly advised.

Note

* A yellow fever vaccination certificate is required from travellers over one year of age coming from infected areas. Those arriving in transit from such areas without a certificate will be detained at the airport until their onward flight departs.

Further Health Information

We advise you to check health requirements for the country you are traveling to with your GP, practice nurse or travel health clinic as health requirements and vaccinations can change at short notice.

Money

Currency

Egyptian Pound (EGP; symbol E£) = 100 piastres. Notes are in denominations of E£200, 100, 50, 20, 10, 5, 1, 50 piastres and 25 piastres. Coins are in denominations of 25, 20, 10 and 5 piastres.

Currency Exchange

Available at banks, official bureaux de change and most hotels. Banks often have better exchange rates than bureaux de change or hotels. All common international currencies are accepted.

Credit/Debit Cards and ATMs

American Express, Diners Club, MasterCard and Visa are accepted, but generally only in bigger hotels or restaurants in Cairo and restaurants in tourist areas.

Traveller's Cheques

To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travellers are advised to take traveller’s cheques in US Dollars, Euros or Pounds Sterling.

Currency Restrictions

Restrictions apply.

Banking Hours

Sun-Thurs 0830-1400.

Passport/Visa

British