Planning a Trip to Egypt ?

In my capacity as the UK Director of Operations for One World Tours Limited, I am often asked all kinds of travel questions. With that in mind I have put together some things that you might like to consider on a trip to Egypt.

 
1-  Flights – obviously this will depend upon where you are coming in from, but Egypt is served by numerous airlines from all over the world and there are international airports in Cairo, Luxor, Hurghada, Sharm el Sheikh and to a lesser degree, Alexandria). North American clients have the choice to fly direct by Egypt Air or via a number of airports in Europe, such as London, Paris, Rome etc using a whole list of International Carriers such as BA, Air France, Air Canada, Alitalia etc.

2-  Visas – For most major nationalities obtaining a visa to visit Egypt is very easy indeed and in the case of residents of the US, Canada, Australia, EU etc, you will actually be able to get your visa on arrival. You do not need any extra paperwork, photos etc. its just a two minute process at the airport and you are set.

3-  Accommodation. Hotels in Egypt are generally of a slightly lower standard that western cities, but this having been said, the yare much cheaper and therefore even if you are working on a budget, you will still be able to get a comfortable hotel for the night and not break the bank. The hotels are available in 1,2,3,4 and 5 star categories but also include 5 star deluxe. These include hotels like the Four Seasons in Cairo, The Cataract Hotel in Aswan and the Old Winter Palace in Luxor. For those of you who cannot run to this sort of expense, then we suggest visiting the Old Winter Palace in Luxor, where you can take in afternoon tea as a guest but without out the shock to your wallet !

4-  Tours / Getting around – Egypt is a bit of a minefield for getting around. If you do go independently, you will get lots of misleading / mis information, mainly aimed at getting you to take up the services of local guides. Theres nothing actually wrong with this system and almost all of the guides are fine, it just means that your trip is likely to come with a few more hassles and arguments then you may ultimately want. I would suggest booking your tours in advance. That way you will be met at the airport and from then on, each morning you’ll be picked up from your hotel for your days touring and you will not be faced with what otherwise can be very daunting tasks such as buying entry tickets. Something that should in fact be very easy, but is not when you are alone and being told, the place is closed or that you need a special permit etc. Having a guide with you to tell the locals your are spoken for, is worth its weight in gold.

5-  What to take – Finally, here are a few things you may or nay not have thought of. Electric. You’ll need an adapter for electrical items / laptops, phone chargers etc as Egypt has European type 2 pin sockets and also runs similar currency. For currency, you can only take in 1,000 LE or Egyptian pounds, however, Australian Dollars, British Sterling, American and Canadian Dollars and travellers cheques are all gladly accepted and all major credits cards are of course taken and there are plenty of ATMs too, so you’ll have no problems is obtaining cash to spend on all those souvenirs. Last of all – take pens. Pens are like currency to children. They loves them. So take a boxof 50 pens with you and give them out whenever you can. Do this subtly though as if you took a whole box out and tried to hand them out, you would have a good natured riot on your hands, this is just how popular pens are with Egyptian youngsters

Have great holiday or vacation in Egypt

Travel to Egypt – Top 3 Egyptian Tourist Attractions

You have the trip planned. You are on your way to Egypt. Visions of pyramids, vast desserts and great kings fill your mind. The idea of a great adventure makes your heart race and the adrenaline pump through your body. There are so many places to see. Egyptian Antiquities Museum, Al-Qalaa Citadel, Coptic Museum, Museum of Islamic Arts, Gayer-Anderson Museum, Mosque of Ibn Tulun, Mosque at Al-Azhar, Abdeen Palace Museum, Abu Sir Pyramids, Manial Palace Museum, just to name a few. But do you know where you absolutely must go to say that you had a complete adventure while in Egypt. There are three places that if you miss, you might as well not have even been to Egypt.

The Giza Pyramids

First place is of course the pyramids. The Giza Pyramids were built as tombs for the great kings of Egypt, and sometimes the queens as well. The driving force behind the pyramids construction was the desire for eternity. These world famous monuments were not in isolation but they were constructed as a part of the funerary complexes which include temples and shrines.

Imhotep is not an Egyptian dance but the famous architect that built and designed the first pyramid. This pyramid can still be seen today in Egypt. They are known as the Step Pyramid at Saqqara, the first monument in Egypt to be made entirely out of hewn stone.

Did you realize that there are two types of pyramids that not all pyramids were made the same? While most of us believe that the heads on some of the pyramids represent kings actually meant something different.

Valley of the Kings

Ramsees XI was the last king of the New Kingdom and his is also the last king to have built a tomb in the Valley of the Kings. Most are sure though that he never used the tomb that he built.

What other secrets lay in wait for you here? Are there kings buried in the valley? Are the royal families buried there, as their final resting place before moving onto to eternity?

There are two main branches of the Valley of the Kings. There is the East Valley where most of the tombs are located. There is also the West Valley and here you will find only a few tombs and some pits.

Abu Simbel Temples

As the story goes, back in 1813 a man named J. L. Burkhardt stumbled upon an amazing site and brought it to the attention of many Europeans. He came across the facade of two temples built to as a dedication to Ramesses II, and the other to his wife, Nefertari.

With these being such incredible finds, it led to many Victorian travelers to make the trek up the Nile and that at times they would get there to find the temples completely covered in sand. You can still see these amazing temples as they were hundreds of years ago, but not where they were built originally. What do I mean by that?

As you can see there are tourist attractions galore for any visitor to Egypt, but there are only three that you absolutely must see in order for your trip to be considered complete. These three sites give you the adventure that you have been dreaming about for your trip.

Egypt Basic Informations

Egypt is one of the most populous countries in Africa and the Middle East. The great majority of its estimated 82 million live near the banks of the Nile River, in an area of about 40,000 square kilometers (15,000 sq mi), where the only arable agricultural land is found. The large areas of the Sahara Desert are sparsely inhabited. About half of Egypt’s residents live in urban areas, with the majority spread across the densely-populated centers of greater Cairo, Alexandria and other major cities in the Nile Delta. Egypt is famous for its ancient civilization and some of the world’s most famous monuments, including the Giza pyramid complex and its Great Sphinx. The southern city of Luxor contains numerous ancient artifacts, such as the Karnak Temple and the Valley of the Kings. Egypt is widely regarded as an important political and cultural nation of the Middle East.

• TOTAL AREA: 1,001,450 sq km
• LAND AREA: 900,923 sq km
• WATER AREA: 100,497 sq km
• POPULATION: 82,444,215 (2008)
• RELIGIONS: Muslim 91%, Christians 9%
• LANGUAGES: Arabic
• GOVERNMENT TYPE: Republic
• CAPITAL CITY: Cairo
• OFFICIAL CURRENCY: Egyptian pound (EGP)
• TIME ZONE: GMT +2