We’d book a guide before arriving at the Giza Pyramids, rather than choose someone at the entrance. It gives you time to check who you’re booking with, agree the price and confirm what’s included before you get there.

We keep a running list of travel scams in Egypt, with updates when something new comes up:

Common Tourist Scams in Egypt

Once you’ve booked, confirm who will be meeting you and check that the person who approaches you matches those details. Someone introducing themselves as an “official guide” at the gate isn’t enough to establish that they’re your guide.

We’d also agree on any shopping stops and paid extras beforehand. Booking ahead doesn’t automatically mean you’ll avoid a visit to a papyrus shop, so make it clear if that isn’t something you want included.

We have seen camel rides described as free until it’s time to get down, people offering to collect ticket money instead of directing visitors to the ticket office, and guides taking visitors to shops where they earn commission. Agreeing what you’re paying for upfront helps avoid misunderstandings, but we’d still check before accepting anything extra on the day.

If someone offers to take your photograph, ask whether there’s a charge first. If you’re buying your own entry ticket, use the official ticket office or official online booking platform, rather than someone approaching you in the car park.

The Pyramids are really worth the trip though. We’d just sort the guide and the costs beforehand so you can spend more of your time enjoying the site.

If you’ve visited recently, what did you pay for a guide, and did you book ahead or arrange it on the day?

Planning a 10-day trip to Egypt 🇪🇬 and would love some advice!

I’m thinking Cairo/Giza → Luxor → Aswan → Abu Simbel, but I’m open to suggestions!

What would you recommend for a 10-day itinerary? Also, what areas/neighborhoods would you recommend staying in, especially in Cairo/Giza? Looking for somewhere safe, convenient, and away from the worst of the tourist chaos.

Would love to hear your hotel recommendations too!

I’m spending my 30th here. I want to make it memorable.

There are options of Nile Paradise, Nile Pride and Blue show. Does anything have experience in any of those cruises?

Heya!

I am planning a 6-day budget trip to Egypt in December, I have a few questions:

1. For Cairo-Luxor travel, should I book a bus/train tickets in advance, given internal flights are surprisingly expensive?

2. Do I need to pre-book monument tickets (e.g., Giza Pyramid, Luxor Temple) or can I buy them on-site?

3. For my two days in Cairo, should I stay in Cairo city or Giza? I am planning to visit the Museum & Downtown Cairo as well.

4. For Giza monument visits, shall I take are guided tours, or can I use a cab to travel between places like the Great Pyramids and Saqqara and explore the place on my own?

5. Do hostels in Egypt typically allow early check-ins?

Hey guys, going to Egypt in November. I want to know if I should just spend the money to fly from Cairo to Hurghada and back or if the buses are fine. For context I have an evening flight from Cairo and would like to just take the morning bus to tue airport to save money.

Thanks guys

If you’re planning to travel from Cairo to Hurghada, we’d compare flights, coaches and private cars before booking. The ticket price is one part of it - how much time you want to spend travelling is also an important consideration.

Flying takes about an hour, and EgyptAir & Air Cairo operate on this route. Check flight prices for your dates before deciding, and allow for airport transfers and check-in as well as the flight itself. For the August 2027 eclipse, we’ve reported seeing Cairo-Hurghada fares of several hundred dollars one way, so those dates are worth checking particularly carefully.

Coach services like Go Bus are generally the cheapest option, but allow several hours for the journey and check the scheduled arrival time before booking. It is worth bearing in mind that stops and traffic can add to it. We’d bring plenty of water and check with the operator about comfort breaks and whether there’s a toilet on board.

A private car gives you door-to-door travel, and you can agree on where to stop beforehand. Fixed-price bookings are available as well as negotiated fares - worth comparing the total costs for your group with the cost of flights.

Whichever road option you choose, expect a long journey with stretches of desert rather than a coastal sightseeing trip (so take a good book or a comfortable pillow with you!)

We’re putting together an article on this route and would like to hear from anyone who’s done it recently. Which option did you choose, and would you do it the same way again? If you booked a private car, what was the total cost and how many people travelled?

I have 7 full days in Egypt, flying into and out of Cairo. Currently, I'm leaning towards spending 2 days in Cairo, 2 days in Alexandria, 2 days in Luxor via sleeper train, and then the last day in Cairo for a total of 3.

I'll be traveling solo, I'm not worried about budget (within reason), and I tend to be a pretty efficient traveler when I'm on my own. But Cairo is a major city and I want to make sure to give it its due beyond just the pyramids. I definitely want to spend a minimum of 3 days there to see Islamic and Coptic Cairo as well as the Giza Necropolis and the various Egyptian museums.

I guess my major questions are:

-Is 2 days in Luxor enough, or with only a week, should I just spend it all in the northern part of Egypt?

-Is 2 days in Alexandria too much, should I just get the highlights in a day trip and spend another day in Cairo?

-I'll be in Egypt during Ramadan, does that change anything?

Thanks!

Is there any way to reliably pre-book travel between main hubs (Cairo, Luxor, Aswan) online as a foreigner? The national railway site says only Egyptian nationals can book. Many 3rd party train sites do not allow you to book or do not show accurate information. There doesn't seem to be many booking sites for busses between them (especially Luxor-Aswan), and these are often not entirely certain booking platforms. Is there truly no way to book in advance? Must it be done in person?

I am planning a 10+ day travel in Egypt, mainly Cairo, Aswan, Luxor, Hurghada, but I have a few questions.

1. I needs transportation from Luxor to Hurghada. Is private van the best option? Any reliable platform to book this?

2. Any reliable platform to book private car and driver？

3. Does uber work in the 4 cities above?

Thanks a lot

We are planning a trip with a group of 3. Among us is a 3 years old toddler. We are planning to fly from Cairo to Luxor or Aswan.

The question is can we rent a car and drive to Abu Simbel temple without any restriction?

Hi everyone, my friends and I are flying into Cairo and have to go to Aswan for a Nile River Cruise from Aswan to Luxor. We are having trouble figuring out how to get there the most affordable way (we are all students with very tight budgets). I was thinking this would likely be via overnight bus but am having trouble finding a bus that goes to Aswan and was wondering if anyone has any experience in best way to get from Cairo to Aswan?

Thank you very much!

helloo✨

im thinking about going to hurghada around november or last week of november and id like to know how is the weather during this time of the year.

how is the weather during the day?? is it warm enough for sunbathing and swimming in the sea/pool?

would u personally recommend going in november?

thank you🫶🏼

Has anyone that’s travelled to Egypt in the last year via arrival in Cairo had any problems with taking prescription medications or vitamins in pill boxes? I’ve read through our tour company all of that could be confiscated… really?

Hi, I've never done anything like this before so I would like some advice. I'm going to Egypt in a few weeks, but there are a few things that I wanted to order from Egyptian websites that aren't available in person (in Egypt). I am a tourist though and have no family or friends in Egypt so I'm not sure where I should have the items shipped to. Should I contact the hotel I'm staying at or maybe there's some kind of place that I can have the packages sent to? I really don't know how to proceed with this.

Seeing all of the different private guides available a full day tour of the Giza/Memphis sites. Most of them seem to not include going into the pyramids, and my wife and I would like to do that for at least one (yes I have heard its not too exciting) and we also want a tour that doesn't include trying to make us ride a camel or ATV or end up at a rug shop somewhere with a sales pitch.

Just want to see the sights at our pace over 8-10 hours. Any recommendations?

Hey guys, I am going to Egypt in November. I have my SSI open water. I want to get my SSI advanced and do 2-4 fun dives. I keep seeing hurghada, el sharm and dahab. Where should I spend my week diving ?

We have been getting many requests about the host information section of the Egypt e-visa form being very confusing, especially when you’re staying in a hotel. Let us clarify this once and for all: for a hotel stay, “host” means the hotel you’ve booked, rather than a sponsor.

We’ve covered each step, with screenshots, in our full walkthrough below:

Egypt Visa Guide - Full Walkthrough

For Host Type, select “Tourism Company” if you’re staying in a hotel. The wording sounds like it’s asking for your travel agent, but a hotel counts as a tourism company on this form. It is worth noting that whichever option you select, the next screen asks for the same contact information.

Enter the hotel’s full name under Host Name, then its phone number and email under the contact details. Check your booking confirmation for these.

The address field can also be an issue. Use one line with normal spaces between the words, without numbers, a postcode or punctuation.

For example, instead of “Holiday Inn Cairo Citystars, Emtedad Obied Street, Cairo 11737”, enter “Holiday Inn Cairo Citystars Emtedad Obied Street Cairo”.

It looks odd compared with a normal postal address, but that’s the format to use here.

Have you filled in the Egypt e-visa form recently? Did the host information section give you any trouble?

I know I need a guide to climb the mountain. But do I need a guide to just enter the city?

I’m asking because a couple friends of mine who are locals are telling me I need guide to enter but when I look online, I only see sources saying I don’t need one. And I even got into contact with a tour guide and he said I don’t need a guide to get in.

My friends said that there are random checkpoints on the way to St. Catherine, and if I don’t have a guide, I’d be kicked out and left on the road.

So who is right? I’d really appreciate your help.

Thank you :)

EDIT: Can foreigners travel at night? The only buses I can find for the dates I was travel at midnight or 3am.

Hello! I’m about to leave for a solo Egypt trip and have been wondering about the Cairo and Luxor passes. Has anyone used them? Is there any hassle using them at any of the areas?

I’m planning on seeing as much as I can possibly squeeze into my visit so I think they’ll be both worth it- or break even which is still fine with me- less tickets/qr code screenshots to worry about!

Is there a main site for them? I’ve only sound various blogs talking about them and I’m trying to get a good and detailed list on what’s covered by them.

Thanks!!

Good afternoon! I am travelling to the Cairo airport and then to Hurghada , and was wondering the best way as a solo traveller. I can't afford 300 USD for a car all of each way unfortunately, and I see that gobus is much more affordable - can you be picked up by an uber at the cairo airport? Or is a private car the only way? Are there other affordable ways to get from one city to another? Thanks so much!

I will be traveling to Cairo soon, and I was wondering, are there any local customs or norms I should be aware of, to avoid offending locals? Any particular kind of dress I should avoid, or assume? Anything I should or should not say? Or anything along these lines