HOW MUCH WE SPENT IN EGYPT
When we went to Egypt we were under prepared. In the past cities/countries we would show up and easily get around on Uber. Finding our way to good places to visit and affordable tours was very easy. In Egypt – it was much different. The traffic is immense in Egypt and to find an Uber was extremely difficult – we never could. In Cairo, Luxor & Aswan a large number of taxis aggressively try to get your business but the information on a fair price is difficult to find.
We had planned to use the advice of our hotel to book our tours, but at every turn there was a added fee or an admission price not included. The sights are all spread out so taking a 4-5-hour drive to one location is common. Not fully realizing this the hotel pushed us to do more in a small amount of time which led to in a 48-hour period we were on a train or bus for 32 hours. It was exhausting. The nice young man at our hotel set us up with a tour guide that very good and was well worth the money. Then on another tour – we were given a horrible guide who over charged us and had no information to give us on the sights and then took us back early. There is no review process for the guides so it is difficult to know if you are getting a good one or a bad one.
We walked away from the country feeling that we had over paid and walked away exhausted. The tourism industry has suffered so bad from the 2011 Arab Spring revolution that no one is concerned about their reputation but more concerned about getting every dollar possible before you leave.
We did meet some fantastic people and we did see some amazing sights and things we will never forget. If I was to do it again – I would spend many more hours researching reputable guides and tours ahead of time.
Thank you for your interest. Beth
PS. Our guide Rashid comes with high recommendation from us if you ever need a guide in Cairo.
