Egypt - Activites, Attractons and Tours

Asphyxia

Hey everyone

My sister is heading to Egypt in June and was just curious about the different activities, tours and attractions she could do there.

If anybody had any info it would be great thanks

NoDice

Hey Pocketfizz!

I was in Egypt a few years ago in Sharm. Loved it (hope your sister isn't staying near the protest areas..) and there's loads to do!

There's the obvious Cairo and Aswan trips. Any google search may help with these though I'm not sure if it'll be safe to go there atm?

We didn't do the trips to Cairo for our holiday as we weren't staying for long (and my boyfriend did not want to stick out a 6 hour bus journey) so I'll let you knwo what we did around Sharm and hope it helps!

The resort we stayed in were so helpful considering they organised most of our excursions for us.

My favourite excursion was the "Bedouin Experience"! It was a full day trip and cost us about 40 quid each which was brilliant! It started off with a bus trip in the evening which took us out miles into the desert. We got off and were met by lots of kids who were actually living in the bedouin settlements and they took us to our camel (it was considered rude not to "tip" them so we gave them a few pounds and they were thrilled!). We rode the camels further into the desert where we got off and started our climb up a mountain (ha it was an easy enough climb, don't get me wrong I'm not a fitness freak or anything!). At the top of the mountain the views were out of this world. Cue photo ops and we were given bottles of water etc. We waited there and were told to look to one side of the mountain where the sun was setting. Beautiful! Then we were told to look at the opposite side where the moon was getting brighter. Cue more photo ops!

Back down the mountain we went, back onto the camels and we were taken to the main bedouin camp which was set up for tourists. We had our dinner made for us the bedouin way (beautiful spiced lamb and potatoes cooked over a stone) and after dinner they passed around a sheesha pipe with different tobaccos to sample.

After dinner and a chat with the locals and other guests we hopped back onto the camels to be taken further into the desert. It was pitch black and we were told to lie out on the rugs that were laid on the sand. We went star gazing here! One of the locals went through the different constellations and pointed out different tips on how to find particular stars. It was great funa nd really interesting. We got to see Saturn perfectly through a telescope they had set up and the moon and a few other stars. I've some fab pics!

We then had a very long bus journey home. It was definitely the best experience I've had abroad. Sorry about how long this is but I can't simplify it or shorten it!

We also went quad biking at sun rise in the desert, we went to the local markets for a bit of haggling and to check out the culture a bit more. We did an awful lot of shopping! There are great malls out there believe it or not and everything is so cheap! Naama Bay is a great place if they're looking for nightlife! There's a hard rock cafe and numerous bars that can't wait to throw shots down your throat!

Just be careful with the taxis and work on your haggling skills before going! That's a must!

NoDice

Sorry again about the long post. I think what I was meant to say was that the resort staff onsite have a countless number of different day trips you can do including cruises on the Nile, visits to the many ruins, temples and tombs. Egypt is amazing. I can't wait to go back in a few years and finally make it to Cairo.

coylemj

Leaving aside the political situation, I wouldn't recommend spending more than two nights (i.e. one full day) in Cairo, the air quality deteriorates rapidly from midday with all the exhaust fumes from the (unserviced) cars. Do the pyramids and the Cairo Museum (King Tut's gold) and then get the hell out of the place.

As you mentioned your sister, she should be aware that the further up the Nile you go, the more conservative the local scene is and by the time you get to Aswan which is the most southern large Egyptian city on the Nile, almost all the women are wearing the full muslim black burka. What this means is that if your sister wants to walk around the local town or village, she needs to dress more conservatively the further up the Nile she goes, otherwise she will get hassled by the local lads who will have been brought up to believe that a woman who walks down the street with bare arms and legs is a hooker and can be treated like a piece of meat.