Pre-booking in Egypt | Egypt - Lonely Planet Forum

ONLINE

Sun, 27 Jan 2013 05:55:57 +0000

Hi
Is there any need to pre-book accommodation, trains etc. I will be traveling throughout April '13. I will be traveling to Alexandria,Siwa.and the other Oases, the sites in Nile Valley, Cairo and the Sinai (diving and St. Katherine's). The reason I ask is that there was some concern in the Media about possible terrorist activity in the North of the Sinai around Christmas time. It appears it may not be as serious as first reported. However, if I do need to change my itinerary, I would prefer not have to cancel bookings.
Would it be necessary to pre-book a Dahabiyya cruise from Aswan to Esna? I am hoping that it may be cheaper if arrange it on the spot. The cost is a lot above my preferred budget and would like to get a berth at the cheapest rate possible. However, I don't want to miss the opportunity of getting a cruise on the date that I need by trying to save money.

Thanks

ONLINE

Sun, 27 Jan 2013 11:08:53 +0000

The main reason for prebooking accommodation would be to save money. I once turned up at a Cairo hotel I'd stayed in before for 320LE for a double. The receptionist refused to reduce the rack rate of 490LE. So I walked to a nearby internet cafe, booked it online for 320LE and returned 20 minutes later with a printed receipt !

As far as trains are concerned, it's advisable to book a ticket for the Cairo to Luxor/Aswan route in advance to be sure of a seat as it's a long journey. You can do this no more than two weeks ahead at enr.gov.eg. It's not as important for the Cairo to Alexandria route as there are frequent trains and the journey takes only three hours.

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