Egypt travel tips

Following are regularly updated travel tips for Egypt.

The text below is from the comprehensive holiday travel tips to be found at
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April 8 2008 Egypt travel tips

The country has seen violent brawls and some deaths caused by bread shortages and high inflation rates in early 2008.

Note: The mummy of the boy pharaoh Tutankhamen is on display for the first time in 3000 years from November 2007 inside his tomb in Luxor's Valley of the Kings. The mummy is in a climate-controlled glass case in the tomb. The body is covered with linen and Tutankhamen's bare, black face is visible. Tutankhamen ruled Egypt between about 1361 and 1352BC and died as a teenager. The 1922 discovery of his intact tomb stunned the world's archaeological community.

It's worth noting that the colossal statues of Ramses II was moved in August 2006 from its heavily polluted base outside the main Cairo train station since 1954 to a new new location 35 km away at the Grand Egyptian Museum near the Giza Pyramids.

Egypt is prone to terrorist attacks both in the capital of Cairo and in the Sinai Peninsula, where hundreds of people have been killed or injured by bomb blasts in Dahab, Nuweiba and Taba since 2004. Three consecutives bomb blasts killed 24 people in Dahab in late April, 2006, with western tourists an apparent target.

You'll sometimes see tourist police with machine guns sitting on camels, and security is so paranoiac it can at times be difficult getting to meet the locals if you're part of an organised tour group.

Tourist numbers have fallen after each terrorist attack, creating various bargains for wily tourists but also making local operators even more desperate to squeeze a few extra dollars from the pockets of tourists.

Americans in particular are advised to be vigilant during their holiday travel in Egypt. The US embassy has advised Americans to avoid tourist areas but most embassies still consider Egypt acceptably safe for travel.

Bird flu was detected in the north of Egypt in early 2006 but poses no greater risk than in other countries travellers might visit.

The Temples of Luxor, Karnack and Hatshepsut are must-see tourist attractions at Luxor. You can venture down into the tombs of Ramses VI and King Tut while in Luxor, but note that it's better to see the incredible wealth of King Tut at the Cairo Museum.

Aswan is Egypt's largest southern settlement just north of the Sudanese border, peppered with memories of French and British colonialism. Elephantine Island is dotted with resort hotels, villages and the Aswan museum, and is a paradise for lovers of ancient Egyptian archeology. Aswan is near the shores of the man-made Lake Nasser and the gigantic Aswan Dam, and has a large Nubian community of African Egyptians who give the town a unique cultural, culinary and linguistic heritage.

Egyptians drive on the right side of the road but cars aren't recommended as the roads in Egypt are poor and medical facilities are limited outside Cairo.

Drive a car or motorbike in Egypt at your own peril. Local drivers pay little attention to road markings or rules and will swerve into whatever space they can find.

Many apartment buildings in Cairo appear not to be completed on their top floor, mostly because of a 10% tax on finished buildings.

Another great place to experience is the ancient Khan Al-Khalili bazaar in the east of Cairo.

The Great Pyramid of Cheops was built by the IV Dynasty pharaoh Khufu (also known as Cheops), who reigned from 2589BC to 2566BC. The 137 metre high pyramid is assembled from more than two million limestone blocks and is thought to weigh six million tons.

Tourists were once allowed to climb the pyramids but several fell to their deaths and climbing is no longer possible.

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