21-year-old seeks advice about Cairo adventure

My ambitious dream is to fly to Cairo, Egypt in the late months of this year, ideally sometime between October and December. I'd like your perspective, fellow travelers, and Egyptians as well.

What You Should Know

1.) I intend to travel alone, walk alone and explore alone. That is, unless I find companionship in kindred spirits or interesting people.

2.) I am a 21-year-old female a tiny bit under 5'2.

3.) I am part Mexican - dark hair, dark eyes, and my skin is a lighter hue of beige. My language is English. I will attempt to learn Arabic, but I struggle with my Spanish, too. I continue to learn about the customs, culture and the way of life in Egypt, in all aspects.

4.) I intend to spend a month in the heart of the bustling city; ideally, in cheap hostels, such as Dina's hostel.

5.) My ambitious budget is $2,800. And somewhere between $1,100 to $1... more »

Nile cruise with small kids

Hi,

We will be travelling with two small children (1y and 4y old) around Egypt for about 2 weeks. Does it make sense for us to book a Nile cruise?

We were thinking about booking a short one (maximum 4 days) from Aswan to Luxor (I think it is quicker that way). How can I find a reasonable one? We can't afford a luxurious one, how can we find a decent mid-range option? Even on trip advisor I can't find reviews of separate cruise companies, so I just don't know how to approach this problem.

Cheers,
Grzes

sharm el sheikh ferry to hurghada

Does anybody on the ground know if it is running currently?

Safety in Egypt coming from Israel

Guys,

Has anyone been recently in Egypt coming from Eilat (Israel)? How safe it is to cross the Sinai desert in direction of Cairo? And is it currently safe to visit Caio and the pyramides?

Thanks a lot!

Bernardo

short Cairo review

This forum was very helpful for me to give me some first advices for my trip in December to Egypt. It was a short trip, I just stayed in Cairo from 28 December to 1 January. So if anybody is interested in some travel experiences from two friends (25 and 24 years old)… here we go!

Because of the turbulences at this time in Cairo (especially at Tahrir) we had a bit respect before our flight started in Zurich. Our hotel (Semiramis) was just some hundred metres away from the place.

After a direct flight we arrived in Cairo on Friday afternoon. We both have travelled a lot in Europe until now, some weeks in Northern and Southern America, but it was our first time in the northern part of Africa. So at the beginning it wasn’t that easy for us to handle with some intrusive people at the airport. We took a taxi (we paid a fix price) to our hotel in the city centre.

Semiramis was a ver... more »

Transport AL-Kharga to Asyut

Hi

Could anybody clear up a slight confusion I have with the lonely planet books.

In both the new edition of Egypt and Discover Egypt they say that there is one bus between Al-Kharga and Asyut at 7PM plus microbuses that leave when full. However, when talking about getting from Luxor to Al-Kharga via Asyut they say that there are several buses a day from Asyut. I don't see that there would be one bus a day in one direction and several in the other. So I wonder if they mean there is one bus and several microbuses between Asyut and Al-Kharga. Alternatively is it a mistake, and that there are several buses in either direction. Or possibly the two buses that go to Cairo from Al-Kharga backtrack slightly and go via Asyut.
Any help would be appreciated.

Chad Visa in Cairo?

Hey Everyone!

Just wondering if any non-egyptians had picked up a visa for chad in Cairo. I went there and they wanted plane ticket, travel agency invitation and a letter from embassy.

Canada doesnt give out a letter...

anyone know a way around that?

(and im travelling overland so I cant give a plane ticket)

any useful/helpful information is very much appreciated!

-Taylor

snorkelling around sharm

I have never been to Egypt but love snorkelling and am hoping to go soon. 2 hotels I am considering are the Hilton Shark Bay and the Hyatt Regency but am not sure which has the best reef. Is the Hyatt reef the Far Garden reef? This is supposed to be particularly good I've read. The Sharm Plaza looks interesting and is next to the Far reef but was put off to hear they have a new nightclub. Didnt want to be kept awake till 2.00 am when it closes!! any info re the above would be gratefully received. Thanks. Wynton.